Hikers Swept Over Yosemite’s Vernal Fall

Park officials at Yosemite National Park reported that at least one visitor fell from Vernal Falls on Tuesday afternoon. There are reports that more than one person went over.

[W]itnesses say a man and a woman climbed over the safety rail at the top of the falls so that they could put their feet in the water. The couple then reportedly tried to get their children to join them, but before the kids got there the couple began to slip. KSEE is reporting a third male family member jumped the railing to try and help, but all three went over the edge…

Yosemite’s official website says that more people die on the Mist Trail than almost anywhere else in Yosemite. It goes on to explain the deaths are not because of the waterfall or the steep cliffs, but instead the current. The river at the top of Vernal Falls has a stronger current than appears. The site says, “Typically, a hiker slips into the water and finds the current too strong to overcome, then gets swept to a regrettable death somewhere downstream.”