YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, California (Reuters) — Yosemite National Park crews have re-routed roads around the base of the towering El Capitan granite formation after a series of at least eight rock falls over two days killed one man and injured two other people, a park spokesman said on Thursday (September 28).
The latest slide, which took place at about 3:20 p.m. Pacific time (6:20 p.m. EDT) on Thursday afternoon, was the largest yet and injured one man, named by CNN as Jim Evans citing park officials, who was airlifted from Yosemite valley to a local hospital, spokesman Scott Gediman said.
The injured man’s wife, Rachel Evans, told an NBC news affiliate that he was behind the wheel while they were driving through Yosemite when the saw a cloud of smoke. Debris from the slide smashed through the sunroof and hit her husband in the head and he began bleeding profusely, she said.
On Wednesday (September 27) there were seven known rock falls from El Capitan, the first of which brought some 1,300 tons of granite down onto a popular hiking trial, killing a British climber and badly injuring his wife.
The deceased man was identified on Thursday as 32-year-old Andrew Foster of Wales. His wife, who was not identified by name, was undergoing treatment at an area hospital after being airlifted out of the park.
