Woman dies in fall from Yosemite's Half Dome

FRESNO, Calif. -- A 26-year-old Bay Area woman who fell to her death Sunday while climbing Half Dome in Yosemite National Park has been identified.

Hayley LaFlamme of San Ramon, Calif., was descending with three friends from the top of Half Dome when she fell 600 feet off the cables, Yosemite spokeswoman Kari Cobb said.

The area of Half Dome had severe lightning, thunder and rain in the morning and early afternoon Sunday, Cobb said.

The last hiker death on Half Dome was Majoj Kumar on June 13, 2009. Kumar also lived in San Ramon.

The woman's death marks the 14th fatality in Yosemite since January. The park normally has 12 to 15 deaths a year, but the average by the end of July is between five and six, Cobb said.

Last month, three members of a church group plunged to their deaths at Vernal Fall after they climbed over a protective railing.

(c) 2011, The Fresno Bee (Fresno, Calif.).

Visit The Fresno Bee, www.fresnobee.com/.

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

 

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