Man Dies Jumping Off Burney Falls

A 30-year-old man tragically jumped to his death off of Burney Falls on Friday. The Shasta County Sheriff’s Department was called to the scene around 5:47 p.m. to look for the body of the man who jumped from the 131-foot waterfall and did not resurface. A dive team recovered the body of the man later that evening.

The man has not been identified yet, with the sheriff’s office waiting to alert family members of the victims death.

Not only is it rare for a person to attempt the jump off of the massive waterfall, it’s illegal. In 2015, we documented the time professional cliffjumper Nick Coulter made the daring feat, only to be hit with fines for the stunt. Here is his jump (note: Coulter is a professional and this attempt should not be tried by anyone):

The area near where one would jump off the waterfall is heavily marked out of bounds. The jump is not only very tall, but it is also very difficult for any jumper to get out far enough to avoid the rocky surface below the water at the bottom of the falls.

It was a truly tragic scene at the Eighth Wonder of the World and a reminder to any adrenaline seekers to avoid the jump, as not many people have actually pulled it off.

We will continue to update this story.