A man fell to his death Tuesday while hiking on a dangerous and closed trail on Barn Bluff in Red Wing.

Firefighters and police were called about 1 p.m. after employees at the city's wastewater treatment plant, which is below the bluff, noticed a hiker was stranded on a steep incline on the bluff's north side.

Seconds after emergency workers arrived, firefighters saw the man fall from where he was stranded, landing on the railroad tracks below the bluff, Fire Capt. Jim Eppen said in a written statement.

The elderly man from Iowa, whom officials are not yet identifying, was hiking with his wife.

Eppen said the bluff's north trail continues to be very dangerous and has been closed to the public for two years. City officials ask that hikers respect the signs and barricades and not go around them for any purpose.

Rescue workers were called earlier in April when a woman fell from the trail but managed to get back up on it, uninjured but shaken.

A 54-year-old man from St. Louis fell to his death while jogging on the bluff in 2013 and a 75-year-old woman was killed in 2011 after slipping off the north trail.

The 340-foot bluff is a popular area for hikers and those looking for a scenic overlook of the Mississippi River and the city of Red Wing.

Mary Lynn Smith