It's difficult to find a more majestic source of natural beauty than a waterfall. If we are blessed to encounter one in person, we instinctively want to get as close to it as possible to fully observe its glorious splendor and take pictures.
Tragically, what begins innocently, often leads to death.
The most recent example of that was the accidental death of a television newscaster, just one day before her 25th birthday. Taylor Terrell fell 185 feet to her death after she apparently slipped on some algae-covered rocks at Rainbow Falls in The Great Smoky Mountains National Park near Ashville, North Carolina.
According to U.S. Forest Service public affairs officer Cathy Dowd, Terrell "was wading in the river near the top of the falls (when) she lost her footing and fell into the water where the current swept her up and over the falls," Dowd said. "Her body was recovered at the base of the falls."
Terrell anchored the "Daybreak" newscast at WMGT-TV in Macon, Georgia. Her TV station broke the tragic news to the viewing audience by describing Terrell as "a bright spot in the mornings."
Terrell was the second person to die at Rainbow Falls in just the one week. Already this year, seven such deaths have been investigated at waterfalls in just that county, according to the Telegraph of Macon.
Waterfall deaths are all too common elsewhere, as well.
For example, last month, two children fell to their deaths over a waterfall at Lower Falls in New York's Letchworth State Park. In May, a man died at Running Eagle Falls at Glacier National Park in Montana. Five years ago, three people fell to their deaths at Yosemite National Park in a horrifying incident that captured national attention.
The U.S. Forest Service warns, "waterfalls are exciting and rivers are a great place to cool off on a hot day, but both pose risks to unprepared visitors. The slippery rocks, steep slopes and undercurrents can catch you by surprise when walking through or in the vicinity of a waterfall."
They issued the following warnings:
- Keep your distance: Heed posted warning signs indicating danger and stay on established trails. Never climb on or around waterfalls.
- Never play in the water above a waterfall: Rocks can be slippery and it's easy to lose your balance especially with bare feet. Currents near waterfalls can be extremely swift even in areas further upstream.
- Never jump off waterfalls or dive into plunge pools at the base of waterfalls: Rocks and logs can be hidden beneath the surface of the water. Often waterfall pools have swirling water or currents that can drag and keep you underwater.
- Don't imitate others: Even if you have seen other people enjoying playing around waterfalls, be aware that they have been lucky to escape unharmed. Waterfalls are constantly changing with varying water flows and erosion of the rocks around them. The current from one place to the next may be faster than you anticipate and the arrangement of rocks or other debris such as logs in the plunge pool is ever changing.