Indian-origin woman plunges 80 metres to her death from a popular clifftop in Victoria

38-year-old Rosy Loomba was visiting the Grampians National Park with her young family on Saturday when she fell from the popular Boroka Lookout near Halls Gap in Victoria that police have issued several warnings about.

Indian-origin woman plunges to her death from a popular clifftop in Victoria

38-year-old Rosy Loomba was visiting the Grampians National Park when she tumbled from the Boroka Lookout Source: Facebook/Getty Images

Family and friends are mourning the death of Ms Loomba who died after she tripped over the edge plummeting more than 80 meters off a clifftop at a popular lookout for tourists in the Grampians in Victoria's west.

According to the police, it is understood that the mother of two fell in front of her husband, Basant and young sons after she climbed past the safety fencing to click a photo at about 3 pm on Saturday.


Highlights:

  • Indian-Australian woman dies after plunging more than 80 meters down a clifftop in Victoria
  • 38-year-old Rosy Loomba was visiting the Grampians National Park when she tumbled from the Boroka Lookout
  • Heartbroken family and friends remember her as a ‘beautiful, bubbly and soulful’ woman

Ms Loomba who worked as a community support worker died at the scene as her horrified family reportedly watched her while she fell, unable to help her. She lived with her family in Craigieburn in Melbourne's north.

It took Victoria Police and State Emergency Service volunteers more than six hours to retrieve her body because of the harsh terrain on Saturday night.
Indian-origin woman plunges to her death from a popular clifftop in Victoria
Heartbroken friends and family remember her as ‘beautiful, bubbly and soulful’ woman Source: Facebook
‘She was a very soulful woman’

Nancy Arora, a friend of Ms Loomba said she was shocked after hearing the devastating news.

“This is very devastating. She was a very soulful woman and was very active and helpful. She loved spending most of the time with her kids. I still can't believe that she's gone," Ms Arora told SBS Punjabi.
Indian-origin woman plunges to her death from a popular clifftop in Victoria
Representative image of the cliff Source: Getty Images

‘No photo is worth a life’

Victoria's Police Minister Lisa Neville described the incident as "tragic" and urged people not to put their lives on risk for the sake of "extreme" photos for social media.

"That is dangerous behaviour, and yesterday should be a stark reminder that anyone who wants to do those extreme photos for social media, that it can kill you," Ms Neville said on Sunday.

"No photo is worth a life."

Ms Neville added that authorities are not in a position to barricade every dangerous spot in popular tourist areas to avoid such incidents.

The tragic incident comes after the police issued a warning last year about tourists risking their lives to take a selfie at the spot.

"We regularly see dangerous photos and videos geotagged to the area where individuals have compromised their own safety to get a particular shot," the police wrote in a Facebook post in January 2019.
The police said Saturday's incident serves as a stark reminder to tourists who often overlook safety barriers for a social media photo that can prove to be fatal.

"Do not take these. It not only puts you in harm's way, but it actually risks our lifesavers, and our emergency services personnel who have to either try and rescue you or recover a body – and that’s what we’ve seen on Saturday," she said.

Police will prepare a report for the coroner.

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4 min read

Published

Updated

By Paras Nagpal

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Indian-origin woman plunges 80 metres to her death from a popular clifftop in Victoria | SBS Punjabi