Glacier National Park rangers believe they have found the body of a man who drowned during the July 4 weekend, park officials said.
Siddhant Vitthal Patil26, fell into Avalanche Creek on July 6, but the creek was flowing too fast to recover his body.
A visitor saw a body in the creek Saturday morning and rangers found it, park officials said. Clothing and equipment similar to what friends said Patil was wearing were also recovered. The body was taken to the Flathead County Coroner for identification using DNA or dental records.
Patil, originally from India, was hiking with friends above a ravine on the Avalanche Lake Trail when he fell into the creek. It was unclear whether he slipped on a wet rock or lost his balance, park officials said.
According to HikingInGlacier.comAvalanche Creek gives visitors “an up-close view of the awesome power of glacial meltwater as it cascades through the narrow gorge.”
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Patil, who had lived and worked in California, was one of two men who drowned while vacationing in the park on July 6.
Raju Jha, 28, from Nepal drowned in Lake McDonald. He was an inexperienced swimmer. His body was recovered later that day in 35 to 40 feet of water, park officials said.
Jha had lived in Portland, Oregon.
At least seven people, including Patil and Jha, have died in the park in the past two years.
In June, a Pittsburgh-area woman drowned in Glacier National Park, CBS Pittsburgh reported. The woman, identified as 26 years old Gillian tone from Armstrong County, died after she fell into the water near St. Mary Falls.
Last year a 28-year-old Kansas woman died after falling into Avalanche Creek in the park and being swept into a ravine.
Year 2022, three people died in one week in the park.
Located in northwestern Montana and with more than 700 miles of trails, Glacier National Park is full of melting glaciers, valleys and lakes. It covers over 1,500 square kilometers and includes 175 mountains.