Indian Techie Couple Falls 800 Feet In US' Yosemite National Park
Hightlights:
- Vishnu
Viswanath, Meenakshi Moorthy were engineers by profession
- Their
bodies were found on the steep terrain below Taft Point
- Investigators
are looking into how the couple fell
 |
A file photo of Vishnu Viswanath and Meenakshi Moorthy on the edge of a cliff at the Grand Canyon
|
In a tragic incident, an Indian couple died after falling
800 feet in an area with steep terrain in California's Yosemite National Park
this week, according to a media report.
Vishnu Viswanath, 29, and Meenakshi Moorthy, 30, fell to
their deaths from Taft Point in Yosemite National Park. They were identified on
Monday as a married couple from India living in the United States, the San
Francisco Chronicle reported.
The report said that the couple had recently moved from New
York after Vishnu Viswanath took a job as a systems engineer at Cisco, based in
San Jose. Together, they chronicled their adventures of travelling around the
world in a blog called 'Holidays and HappilyEverAfters'.
Rangers recovered their bodies on the steep terrain on
Thursday below Taft Point, a popular tourist spot that offers spectacular views
of the Yosemite Valley, Yosemite Falls, and El Capitan. Visitors had spotted
the bodies a day earlier.
Park spokesman Jamie Richards was quoted as saying in the
report that "We still do not know what caused them to fall. We're trying
to understand what happened. We may never know, (but) from everything we see,
this was a tragic fall."
Investigators were looking into how the couple fell or what
had occurred when the accident happened at the famous spot which is a favourite
place for tourists from around the world to take scenic and memorable photos.
Earlier, the National Park Service had said in a statement
that the recovery operation for a male and female visitor who had died in the
fall from Taft Point was completed on the afternoon of October 25. The
department said the two people fell approximately 800 feet below Taft Point in
an area with very steep terrain.
This recovery operation involved Park Rangers using
technical climbing and rappelling techniques, in addition to helicopter support
from the California Highway Patrol for a short-haul operation.
The report added that the couple had been married since 2014
and both were software engineers. On the cover of Vishnu Viswanath's Facebook
page is a picture of the two of them smiling on the edge of a cliff at the
Grand Canyon.
In a Facebook post, College of Engineering, Chengannur said
the two were its alumni and added that it deeply mourns their "accidental
demise". The college said Vishnu Viswanath and Meenakshi Moorthy belonged
to the BTech 2006-10 Computer Science and Engineering batch.
"Our hearts go to the friends and family members of
this lovely couple. May their souls rest in peace," the college said.
Raj Katta, 24, of New York, said he got to know both of them
while attending Bradley University, in Illinois. He said Vishnu Viswanath was a
"thoughtful and amazing guy, very talented. They are a really happy
couple. Very positive."
Mr Katta described Meenakshi Moorthy as extremely positive
and enthusiastic. "She's one of those girls who wants to explore the world
and discover a deeper meaning in life."
He said in the report that Vishnu and Meenakshi had decided
six months ago that he would take the job at Cisco and they would live in
California for a year or so.
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