20yo dies after slipping off 177-foot waterfall while posing for pictures

The Brief

  • A Kentucky man died Monday after he slipped while atop a 177-foot-tall waterfall.
  • Oregon State Police report that he was posing for pictures in a closed area when he fell.
  • His death occurred at South Falls, in Silver Falls State Park, which is near Eugene.

A 20-year-old Kentucky man died after he slipped and fell while posing for photographs atop a nearly 200-foot-tall waterfall, the Oregon State Police reported.

Timeline:

State troopers and deputies with the Marion County Sheriff’s Office found the man, who was identified as Zachary Mertens, Monday evening after they responded around 6:30 p.m. to a report that someone had fallen from a waterfall in Silver Falls State Park, just east of Salem.

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