Rangers at Glacier National Park, Montana, have found the body of Siddhant Vitthal Patil, a 26-year-old from India, who tragically fell into Avalanche Creek on July 6.
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Siddhant Patil, a tech professional living in California, was hiking with seven friends when the incident occurred.
In a recent statement, park officials announced, “After weeks of searching, rangers at Glacier National Park have recovered the body of 26-year-old Siddhant Vitthal Patil from India.
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Siddhant Patil fell into Avalanche Creek on July 6, 2024, and drowned.” They also mentioned that clothing and gear matching what he was wearing at the time were found with the body.
The body was spotted by a park visitor around 10:30 am on Saturday in Avalanche Creek below the gorge, prompting immediate recovery efforts by the rangers. The Flathead County coroner is now working to confirm the identity through DNA or dental records.
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Rangers believe the body was trapped underwater by submerged obstacles like fallen trees or rocks, which made it difficult to search the area for weeks due to deep water and strong currents during the spring and summer runoff.
It was only after the water level dropped that rangers could explore large parts of the gorge, but some of the deepest and most dangerous areas remained out of reach.
Siddhant’s uncle, Pritesh Chaudhari, confirmed that U.S. ranger officials had notified the family about Siddhant’s body being found. He thanked the rangers for their diligent search efforts and expressed gratitude to Indian American community leader Prem Bhandari for his continuous support during the search.