Industry News
A 29-year-old woman fell 500-feet to her death while hiking up Half Dome in Yosemite National Park in California on Thursday.
Yosemite National Park spokesperson Scott Gediman reports that Danielle Burnett was climbing the steepest part of the climb up the cables near the summit of Half Dome when she fell over 500-feet down steep, rocky terrain.
Officials are investigating the death.
Half Dome in Yosemite National Park has seen at least 290 accidents and 13 deaths in the past 15 years, according to Business Insider.
The climb up Half Dome is steep and scary.
Yosemite’s website says this about the final climb to the summit of Half Dome:
“For most, it is an exciting, arduous hike; for a few, it becomes more of an adventure than they wanted. Indeed, park rangers assist hundreds of people on the Half Dome trail every summer. Most of these emergencies could have been prevented…” – Yosemite National Park website
The hike up Half Dome is a 16-mile round trip that involves climbing about 5,000-vertical-feet from the Yosemite Valley floor.
The final part of the hike up Half Dome is very steep, is about 400-vertical-feet, and has metal cables that have been installed so that hikers can use them to safely ascend and descend that steepest part of the climb.
Permits are required for anyone who wants to climb the cables to the top of Half Dome.
