A teen visiting Yosemite National Park in California is believed to have fallen over the waterfall and is presumed dead, according to park officials who spoke to USA Today.
Aleh Kalman, 19, was swept along the Merced River and down a 594-foot waterfall on Saturday, according to Kari Cobb, the park's spokeswoman.
"We believe a fall from the top of that waterfall is not survivable," Cobb said. "We have moved to limited, continuous searching."
Teams will search the area around where Kalman went missing every few days or when the water level drops, exposing more of the riverbank.
The park is located 200 miles east of San Francisco and consists of almost 1,2000 square miles. It is famous for its immense waterfalls, which present a danger to visitors who don't exercise enough care around them. Four people drowned in the park in 2012, and another seven drowned in 2011.
Kalman had been visiting the park with a church group. They had been hiking along the Mist Trail when he decided to go swimming in the river upstream of the Nevada Fall, according to Cobb. Witnesses saw Kalman attempt to swim back to shore from a rock where he was holding on after the current came up. He was swept downstream towards the waterfall.
Teams on foot looked for Kalman, aided by a California Highway Patrol helicopter and three dog teams that were dispatched to the area immediately. Search efforts continued from Saturday, when Kalman went missing, through the evening and again on Sunday.
The river is cold this time of year, with temperatures in the low 50s. Cobb also called the river "swift and powerful."
Swimming in the river isn't banned, though visitors are urged only to do so if using extreme caution, including being aware of the nearby waterfalls. The park only received 50 percent of normal snow pack, but the rivers are continuing to run at high levels nonetheless.
Kalman is not the first victim of the waterfalls this year. Last month, Kenneth Stensby, 73, a visitor from Minnesota, fell over a waterfall and was found at the base of a 317-foot drop at Vernal Fall.
News report on the missing teen, Aleh Kalman.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
