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Body of Indian techie recovered at US Park
Patil fell into Avalanche Creek on July.6, 2024.
The discovery was made on the morning of Aug.4. / Pexels
Park rangers at Montana’s Glacier National Park have recovered the body of 26-year-old Indian techie Siddhant Vitthal Patil, after weeks of intense searching. Patil fell into Avalanche Creek on July 6, 2024, and tragically drowned.
The discovery was made on the morning of Aug. 4, around 10:30 a.m., when park visitors reported seeing a body. Rangers promptly recovered the remains from the creek.
Patil, originally from Maharashtra, was residing in California, where he worked as a technology professional. On July 6, he was hiking with friends above a gorge on the Avalanche Lake Trail when he deviated from the designated path.
According to witnesses, Patil climbed onto a large rock, possibly to get a better view, but slipped or lost his balance on the wet surface, causing him to fall into the rushing waters of Avalanche Creek. Friends and bystanders watched helplessly as Patil went underwater, resurfaced briefly, and was then swept away by the powerful current into the gorge.
A statement from the park on July.10 indicated that rangers had been monitoring the area and managed to recover some of Patil's personal belongings downstream. They also deployed a drone to assist in the search, but it proved unsuccessful. The search efforts were complicated by the creek's depth, turbulence, and underwater obstacles, including fallen trees and rocks.
Authorities now suspect these submerged obstacles trapped the body, preventing its recovery until recent lower water levels allowed rangers to probe the area more effectively.
Siddhant's uncle, Pritesh Chaudhari, expressed deep gratitude to the park rangers and Indian American community leader Prem Bhandari for their unwavering support during the search efforts. Bhandari, a well-known leader within the Indian diaspora, has been instrumental in the process of locating and now repartriating the mortal remains to India.
"I was using @prekha but have now returned to New York and want to once again extend my deepest condolences to everyone affected by the tragic loss of Siddhant Patil. I have no words to adequately thank Deputy Superintendent Pete Webster of Glacier National Park and his team for… https://t.co/ms9tPnYJZM
— Prem-Bhandari (@PremBhandariNYC) August 4, 2024
In a post on X, Bhandari shared that park officials extended their condolences to the bereaved family, expressing hope that recovering the body would provide some closure to Siddhant's loved ones. The next step involves repatriating the mortal remains to the grieving family in India.
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