Yosemite rock fall kills at least one person, hurts another

Reuters
El Capitan granite monolith in Yosemite National Park is seen after a rockfall that killed a person and hurt another on Wednesday at the Yosemite National Park in California, U.S. on September 27, 2017. Courtesy Tom Evans/NPS via REUTERS

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - At least one person was killed and another hurt on Wednesday when a rockslide from the famed El Capitan granite monolith in Yosemite National Park in California rained boulders onto a popular hiking trail, a park spokesman said.

Search and rescue teams responded to the scene following the incident shortly before 2 p.m. pacific time and were assessing the situation, along with a park helicopter, Yosemite spokesman Scott Gediman said in a statement.

Gediman said crews were working to transport the injured person to a hospital. He said no further details were immediately available.

The rocks appeared to have fallen from an area near the popular "Waterfall Route" climbing trail on the east buttress of El Capitan during an active time for hiking in the popular national park.

Yosemite remained open and visitor services were not affected, Gediman said.

El Capitan is one of the best-known landmarks in Yosemite and a world-class challenge for rock-climbers.

(Reporting by Dan Whitcomb; Editing by Leslie Adler and Sandra Maler)