UK Tourist Fell To Death While Taking Photo

A British tourist who fell to her death from a cliff ledge in Australia was preparing to take a photo at the time of the tragedy.

A tour company guided Zoe Woolmer, 23, and other tourists down to the popular spot at Kings Canyon in the Northern Territory for a photo opportunity in June 2014, an inquest in Australia has heard.

The ledge was described as a "lookout" where visitors could take "fun" images that would give the impression they were clinging to or falling from the cliff.

It was on the tour company’s itinerary despite signposted warnings at the canyon and the death of an English tourist at the same ledge in 1996.

Opening the inquest in Alice Springs, Kelvin Currie - the counsel assisting the coroner - said the cause of the fall was unclear with a number of witnesses giving details about what they saw.

One of them said Ms Woolmer fell as she went to put her right foot down and it did not reach the ledge as she anticipated.

Mr Currie said: "As the witness put it 'she stepped on air'. At that moment she also appears to have let go of her hold on the top ledge.

"She reached out for the top ledge as she was falling backwards."

Another witness said Ms Woolmer jumped down to the ledge as she lost her balance and a third said she stumbled as she turned after reaching the ledge.

She then fell 15 metres (50ft) on to more rocks - suffering from severe injuries including skull fractures, bleeding to the brain, a broken back, a fractured pelvis and a fractured right shoulder blade.

She died 50 minutes later at the scene.

Ms Woolmer was in Australia on a 12-month working visa when she left Sydney for Alice Springs to take part in a three-day tour of the Watarrka and Uluru-Kata Tjuta national parks with The Rock Tour company.

The inquest continues.