Married couple dies after falling 800 feet at Yosemite National Park
Couple had recently posted warning about posing for photos in dangerous places
Couple had recently posted warning about posing for photos in dangerous places
- Married couple Meenakshi Moorthy and Vishnu Viswananth died after falling at Yosemite National Park.
- The two ran a travel blog and described themselves as a "dreamer-doer duo."
- Authorities are not sure what caused them to fall at scenic Taft Point.
Two travel bloggers living in California died on Oct. 25 after they fell 800 feet at Yosemite National Park, the reports. Meenakshi Moorthy and Vishnu Viswananth had hiked to Taft Point, an area with very steep terrain, according to the . Park rangers had to use helicopters and rock climbing techniques to recover their bodies.
Both Moorthy and Viswananth were born in India but lived and worked in the United States. The married couple ran a travel blog called , which has since been taken down. But their describes them as a “dreamer-doer duo diagnosed with the ‘curious case of interminable travel bug’ and believers of ‘happily-ever-afters.’”
So far authorities don’t know exactly what caused them to fall at Taft Point, a scenic location where many people take photos. “We still don’t have any clear idea exactly what happened,” Yosemite spokeswoman Jamie Richards told the Mercury News. “We are still trying to piece it together.”
On their Instagram account, which has 14,000 followers, they about the dangers of posing for photos on cliffs. “A lot of us, including yours truly, (are fans) of daredevilry attempts of standing at the edge of cliffs and skyscrapers,” one post noted. “But did you know that wind gusts can be fatal? Is our life just worth one photo?”
More than 10 people have died at Yosemite this year, the reports. Some died from natural causes, while others died from falls. Tomer Frankfruter, a teenager from Israel, died last month after falling from the 600-foot-tall Nevada Fall. And in 2015 wingsuit flier Dean Potter and his partner, Graham Hunt, died after jumping from Taft Point and crashing.
The couple met in college at the College of Engineering in Chengannur, India.
“Our hearts go to the friends and family members of this lovely couple,” the school said in a statement. “May their souls rest in peace.”