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British university professor dies after fall at US tourist lookout | |
(about 4 hours later) | |
A British physics professor has died after falling on to rocks while visiting a beauty spot in Maryland. | |
Alexei Likhtman, 44, lost his balance while taking photographs and fell around 15 metres (50ft) on a trip to part of the long-distance walking route, the Appalachian Trail, police said. Other hikers tried to save him but he died about an hour later, at midday on Sunday. | |
A spokesman for Maryland Natural Resources police said the University of Reading professor was in the US to attend a conference in Baltimore. He had been visiting a section of the trail called Annapolis Rock with a PhD student, Jian Zhu, also from Reading, who was uninjured. | |
Lt Art Windemuth said: “About 10.45am the victim was photographing the area and tripped and fell approximately between 40 and 50ft. | |
“People in the area immediately began first aid and called 911. Emergency personnel arrived and immediately began first aid, but the victim was pronounced deceased about noon.” | “People in the area immediately began first aid and called 911. Emergency personnel arrived and immediately began first aid, but the victim was pronounced deceased about noon.” |
Windemuth said Likhtman had been leaping across rocks when he tripped. | |
“He was with a student of his and was taking photographs. He had a tripod with a camera on it, the camera fell and he fell. He was jumping from rock to rock when he tripped.” | |
Likhtman’s body was transferred to the office of the chief medical officer in Baltimore for a postmortem examination. His family has been informed of his death. | |
Related: The most polluted US national parks | Related: The most polluted US national parks |
According to his Facebook and LinkedIn accounts, Likhtman moved from Moscow to the UK to study and teach. | |
He worked as a lecturer at the University of Leeds between 1999 and 2007 before taking up a post of professor of mathematical physics at Reading, working in applied mathematics. He was also the departmental director of postgraduate research studies. | |
The Appalachian Trail is a 2,200-mile hiking trail in eastern America, stretching from Maine in the north to Georgia in the south. | The Appalachian Trail is a 2,200-mile hiking trail in eastern America, stretching from Maine in the north to Georgia in the south. |
It was brought to wide appeal by the Bill Bryson book A Walk In The Woods, which was recently made into a film of the same name starring Robert Redford and Nick Nolte. |
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