Georgia man drowns near Great Smoky Mountains waterfall

Drowning tile
Drowning tile

MARYVILLE, Tenn. - Authorities say a 59-year-old Georgia man drowned after slipping into the water near a waterfall in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Park spokeswoman Dana Soehn said in a news release that authorities recovered the body of Jitendra Patel, of Roswell, Georgia, on Thursday night in the water below Abrams Falls in Blount County, Tennessee.

Soehn says Patel was hiking with friends around noon when he slipped and fell into the water.

The 2.5-mile hike to Abrams Falls, which is a popular area for day hikers, begins from the Abrams Falls Trailhead, located at the far western end of Cades Cove.

The Knoxville News Sentinel reports that authorities regularly caution hikers about not climbing the rocks on the waterfall, noting several people have fallen to their deaths.

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