San Ramon Woman Falls to Death Descending Yosemite's Half Dome

BAY CITY NEWS – A 26-year-old San Ramon woman died Sunday after she fell from the Half Dome cables at Yosemite National Park, according to park officials.

The park's emergency communications center received a 911 call at about noon reporting that a hiker had fallen from the cables, which allow hikers to reach the nearly 5,000-foot summit without the use of rock-climbing equipment.

National Park Rangers responded and found Hayley LaFlamme dead from the fall.

It appears that she had climbed to the top of Half Dome and was on her way down when she fell and landed about 600 feet below, according to the park service.

Park rangers are still investigating what caused her to fall but noted that there had been a severe thunderstorm for several hours that morning.

Wet weather can make for hazardous trail conditions, and the granite slopes along the cable route can become slick, according to the park service.

The last hiker to die on Half Dome was 40-year-old Manoj Kumar, also a San Ramon resident, who slipped and fell on June 13, 2009, during a rain and hail storm.

LaFlamme graduated from Castro Valley High School.

– Jennifer Wadsworth contributed to this report