Mom Falls to Death at 'Perfect Selfie' Spot

Rosy Loomba climbed past safety barriers, warning signs at Australian national park, police say
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 14, 2020 10:50 AM CST
Mom Plummets to Her Death Off 'Picture-Perfect Rock'
Boroka Lookout in Grampians National Park.   (Getty Images/SL)

A weekend family outing turned tragic after a mom plummeted to her death off a cliff in front of her husband and two young sons while trying to take a photo. News.com.au reports that 38-year-old Rosy Loomba was hiking with her family Saturday in Grampians National Park, in Australia's Victoria state, when they happened upon what's been described as a "picture-perfect rock" and the "perfect selfie" spot: Boroka Lookout. Police say Loomba ignored warning signs and safety barriers, pushing past them to take her perch at the cliff's edge for a selfie before she tripped and fell more than 260 feet. Witnesses could hear Loomba screaming but couldn't do anything to help her, per 9News. Just a half-hour before Loomba fell, a tour guide warned visitors at the lookout spot about not circumventing the safety barriers.

"This happens all the time and one of these days someone's gonna fall off," he said. The spot has become famous on social media for its stunning views, with thousands of pictures on Instagram tagged there, including ones showing people standing and sitting on the cliff's edge, and even doing handstands and backflips. It took police and rescue crews six hours over rough terrain to retrieve Loomba's body. CNN notes the lookout platform was shut down during the recovery mission but was reopened by 10pm local time on Saturday. "What we saw ... was a really tragic outcome of behavior that unfortunately we see too often," Victoria Police Minister Lisa Neville tells News.com.au, adding to CNN: "We can't rope off every part of Victoria. People have to take responsibility." (More Australia stories.)

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