College students lost their lives in Yosemite Park The three college students swept over the 317-foot Vernal Fall in Yosemite are now presumed dead – two men and woman. According to witnesses, they ignored warning signs and climbed over a guard rail to have their photo taken on a rock in the middle of the river. When Ramina Badal slipped, Homiz David and then Ninos Yacoub tried to help. All three were swept over the fall. The tragedy is described as traumatizing image of a young woman slipping on a rock above the raging Vernal Fall and two friends falling in trying to save her. “This will be a chance for us to re-educate our young people about how valuable life is,” said Charmain Morad-Daniel, a member of the Assyrian National Council of Stanislaus County. “It’s a tragedy for the Assyrian community because these are role models and they’re active in youth activities through the church.” They were members of St. George’s Church in California’s Central Valley, part of an Assyrian Christian denomination.
As temperatures rise, the melting snow has engorged waterways, causing flooding and sometimes tragic consequences.
By Janete Weinstein Source AP and Los Angeles Times July 21, 2011
3:38 p.m. PDT