Glacier National Park rangers believe they have found the body of a 26-year-old man from India who drowned in Avalanche Creek nearly a month ago, according to a news release.
Officials on Aug. 3 recovered the body shortly after a park visitor at 10:30 a.m. reported seeing a body in Avalanche Creek below the gorge.
Siddhant Vitthal Patil, who was visiting from California with friends, had been missing since July 6 after witnesses saw him fall into Avalanche Creek.
The victim’s clothing and gear matched Patil’s attire, according to friends, but the man has not yet been identified by the Flathead County coroner to confirm.
Rangers suspect that the body was being held underwater by submerged obstacles like fallen trees or rocks while the water depth and whitewater conditions have limited their search abilities during higher water. As the water levels dropped, rangers were able to probe larger portions of the gorge with long poles but were unable to reach the deepest and most dangerous areas.
On July 6, Patil was hiking above the gorge on Avalanche Lake Trail when he diverted from the trail and fell off a large rock into Avalanche Creek. It is unclear if he slipped on a wet portion of the rock or if he lost his balance. Friends and witnesses saw him go underwater in the creek and resurface briefly before he was swept up by the current and into the gorge, according to the release.
ALERT helicopter conducted aerial searches of the creek and rangers scoured the area on July 6, recovering personal items that washed downstream. Over the past four weeks, ground search efforts continued from the gorge to the bridge on Trail of the Cedars. Rangers flew a drone multiple times over the gorge in an attempt to locate the body.
Trail of the Cedars and Avalanche Lake Trail were temporarily closed today during recovery efforts and reopened around 3:30 p.m.