Popular Indian influencer Aanvi Kamdar died on June 16 after falling almost 300 feet into a gorge. The Influencer was an accountant from Mumbai, India, who recorded travel videos in her spare time. Her Instagram page has over 300,000 followers and her videos frequently exceed 1 million views. The 27-year-old woman was recording a video near the edge of the Khumbe waterfall when she slipped and fell onto the rocks in the valley below. It is unclear if her attempt to record a video caused her to fall. The waterfall is a popular tourist attraction three hours south of Mumbai, India.
Kamdar was accompanied by a group of travelers who called search and rescue to the scene after the incident. “She fell on the hard, slippery patch of rocks around 300 feet into the valley,” a rescuer told the Economic Times.
It took six hours and the combined effort of 56 people from different search and rescue operations to reach and recover the victim. The rescue proved to be complicated because of rain as well as the difficult terrain in the area kept teams from seeing Kamdar’s location. She was sent up using a stretcher attached to rappelling ropes. Six rescuers climbed down the hill, while another 50 assisted atop the hillock, according to rescuer Shantanu Kuveskar who spoke with the Economic Times.
According to the Economic Times of India, the victim survived the initial fall and was responsive when rescuers arrived at the valley floor. She was put on a ventilator and lifted to a nearby hospital where she lost her life later that same day.
Many people used the comments of her final Instagram post to express their shock and sadness about the incident. “Anyone who has known Aanvi would know what kind and genuine soul she was,” a user commented on Instagram.
This accident is tragic but it is not clear if it could have been avoided. Users on social media claim that she was a responsible traveler and that this was an accident that could’ve happened to anyone.
