Rocky Mountain National Park's public information officer Kyle Patterson reports that lightning strikes at the park have killed two people in two days, injuring several more.

Patterson told CNN that both strikes hit people on trails off Trail Ridge Road, at elevations of 10,829 and 11,400 feet. On Friday, eight were hit and one woman—Rebecca R. Teilhet, 42, of Yellow Springs, Ohio—died at the scene. Four were hit on Saturday afternoon, one of whom died later at the hospital.

Dr. Martin Koschnitzke, of the Estes Park Medical Center, spoke to KUSA, via CNN:

"We can't emphasize enough that when it starts getting dark and clouds are forming, it's time to get down," he said. "My understanding is this group was actually in the process of doing that and still got caught, which is really a sad thing."

These were the first lightning deaths in the park since 2000.

[image via Shutterstock]