A hiker who  died after a fall from Half Dome in Yosemite Park was recently identified as Manoj Kumar, a 40-year-old man of San Ramon, California. According to reports, Kumar was not an inexperienced hiker, and poor conditions were probably a factor in the fall that lead to his death in this slip and fall accident.

Kumar attempted to descend the mountain as most others do, utilizing the cabled ladder system that hangs adjacent to the Half Dome, which regularly transports climbers from the 435 foot high summit back to the ground. Kumar was descending when he seems to have let go of the cable, which could have been caused by the wetness of the equipment or the fact that he traveled on the outside edge of the cable.  During this Saturday evening, the area was subject to both rain and hail. In fact, several hikers became caught in the hailstorm and were forced to remain on Half Dome when the slip and fall accident occurred.

Hiking the Half Dome is know to involve risk, even when conditions are optimal. In this case, however, this risk involved in the hike led to the death of Kumar, a North California software engineer who fell nearly 200 feet to his death. Slip and Fall accidents as well as injuries and death are not a very common occurrence on Half Dome, as this event is the first since the similar death of Hirofumi Nohara during a slip and fall accident in June 2007.

Investigation continues regarding the cause of this accident, but if a problem arises concerning liability of the park and of the hiker, the legal aspect of this slip and fall accident will be of the utmost importance. If you have also been involved in a slip and fall accident, our offices in Los Angeles can provide you with appropriate legal help you may need to address the legality of your case.

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