An adventurous expedition in the U.K. has led to a terrible tragedy.
Travel influencer Maria Eftimova died Feb. 22 after falling roughly 65 feet while climbing the north ridge of the Tryfan mountain in Snowdonia, Wales, according to the BBC. She was 28.
Nearby climbers rappelled down to Eftimova while a member of the Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescue Organisation performed CPR, the rescue team told the outlet. Sadly, the efforts proved unsuccessful, and she subsequently died from her injuries.
Following her passing, the late content creator was remembered lovingly by those closest to her.
“Maria was a one of a kind person who lived life to the fullest,” Eftimova’s best friend Megan Griffiths told the BBC, “not only adventurous and free-spirited but also incredibly kind, intelligent, and selfless.”
Griffiths continued, “Her tragic loss will be felt by so many, and we are absolutely devastated to lose such a precious friend.”
Another friend, Victoria Critchley, described Eftimova’s “insatiable thirst for life” and particular passion for snowboarding, adding that she had plans to hit the slopes in Austria before her untimely death.
“Tragically,” Critchley told the outlet, “she was taken from her family far far far too soon.”
Critchley also pointed out that Eftimova’s grief-stricken family—who live in Bulgaria—now faced the challenge of paying to bring her body back to her home country in order to “give her the dignified farewell with her loved ones that she deserves.”
Eftimova was the second person to perish in Eryri National Park in less than 10 days, per the BBC. On Feb. 16, a woman descending the Glyder Fach mountain slipped on a patch of grass and fell, while her partner also suffered a fall trying to reach her. Though the partner suffered escaped with head and wrist injuries, the woman did not survive.
“The thoughts of all involved are with the casualties’ families and friends,” the Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescue Organisation said in a statement to the BBC. “Thank you to all the members of the public who tried to help.”
