On July 20, 1973, Smithson, a photographer and the pilot died in a light aircraft crash while inspecting the site of "Amarillo Ramp" on the ranch of Stanley Marsh 3 near Amarillo, Texas in a Beechcraft Baron E55; the National Transportation Safety Board attributed the accident to the pilot's failure to maintain airspeed, with distraction being a contributing factor. The work was subsequently completed by Smithson's widow Nancy Holt, Richard Serra and Tony Shafrazi. It was originally built to rise from a shallow artificial lake, but the lake later dried up, and the earthwork has become overgrown and eroded.