Instagrammers are risking their lives to take photos at deadly waterfalls

The search for the perfect Instagram shot at a waterfall in the US may have cost some users their lives, an expert has warned.

The Kaaterskill Falls in the Catskill Mountains has seen it’s popularity soar of late thanks to it’s totally Instagrammable beauty.

But for some capturing that beauty has come at a tragic price.

In 2016, two people lost their lives at the scenic falls and since 1992 there have been at least eight fatal accidents.

According to a New York forest ranger, the last four people who died at the falls were taking or posing for pictures and he believes the pursuit of the perfect picture to post to social media could be to blame.

“Just talking to people who come up here, they say, ‘Yeah, we saw this on the internet — we’re trying to find it,’” state forest ranger Rob Dawson told NY Times.

“The unfortunate thing is, with those pictures, there’s nothing informing people that you could get seriously hurt here, too.”

By way of tackling the problem the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has implemented new safety measures including a stone staircase, a viewing platform, new fencing, warning signs, hand railings and a new bridge.

It isn’t the first time people have risked their lives in pursuit of the perfect picture.

Earlier this year Instagram star Katarina Elle Zarutskie, who boasts over 44,000 followers, was floating in the clear waters of Staniel Cay in the Bahamas among dozens of sharks when a five-footer took a bite out of her arm.

And last month a couple were criticised for a photographic stunt they performed dangerously close to an approaching plane at a beach notorious for low-flying aircraft.

Though there’s no doubt the image they created was impressive, it caused quite the backlash on social media after a New Zealand woman died when she fell from the blast of a departing plane at the same beach a year ago.

Somehow that dreamy Instagram shot no longer seems worth the risk, right?

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