On Nov. 10, Cornell University sophomore Winter Knutson was found dead in Fall Creek Gorge. Earlier that morning a woman — only identified as a Cornell student as of this time — was found unresponsive after falling into another section of the Fall Creek Gorge. The unidentified student was airlifted from a field on Cornell’s campus to Robert Packer Hospital in Sayre, Pennsylvania. First responders have stated that the two incidents are not believed to be connected.
According to the IPD and IFD press releases, Knutson’s body was found in the water around 10:39 a.m. shortly after first responders were dispatched at 10:30 a.m. The Ithaca Police Department, along with the Ithaca Fire Department, Bangs Ambulance and Cornell University Police Department responded to the report of a “possible deceased individual in the water below the bridge in the 800 block of Stewart Avenue.”
The IPD report said that upon arriving at the scene, first responders observed someone in the water “obviously deceased.” The body was then removed from the gorge over the course of three hours as first responders rappelled down to the water, placed the person in a carrier and used a rope system to bring them out of the gorge.
As of Nov. 12, all police reports state there is no indication of foul play apparent at this time but that the investigation is ongoing.
Knutson’s identity was not made public until a message was released Nov. 11 by Ryan Lombardi, vice president for student and campus life at Cornell.
The unidentified student’s condition is unknown as of 11 a.m. Nov. 12 and the incident is being investigated by the Ithaca Police Department. The Tompkins 911 Center received a call around 1:10 a.m. Nov. 10 that an individual had fallen near the Stewart Avenue bridge, according to the Ithaca Fire Department’s statement. Ithaca Police, Bangs Ambulance and Cornell Environmental Health and Safety also responded. The student was stabilized by first responders and recovered from the gorge within an hour-and-a-half, according to the IFD’s statement. The student was transported to Jessup Field by ambulance and brought to the trauma center by a Life Net air ambulance.
The IFD also stated that at around 10:50 a.m. Nov. 10 — during the recovery of Knutson’s body — a passerby reported they thought they saw a person jump into the gorge by the Giles Street pedestrian bridge. No person was located after first responders searched the area.
