Man Falls From Half Dome

In a tragic accident, a man climbing the cables on Half Dome lost his footing and plummeted down the side of the mountain to his death on Saturday.

Modesto Bee: Hirofumi Nohara, 37, of Japan, was ascending Half Dome mid afternoon when he slipped and fell, Yosemite park ranger Adrienne Freeman said. He was pronounced dead at the scene, she said.

Nohara did not appear to be doing anything unsafe, according to the initial investigation by the National Park Service.

Nohara was making the climb with four friends, Freeman said. They were above him when he fell. He was in the United States on a work visa.

Other details were unavailable pending further investigation, Freeman said.

Freeman said 10 to 12 people die in Yosemite each year, but very few fatalities are on Half Dome.