The 21-year-old woman who fell and died at the Northcliff Ridge on 17 January has been identified as Cheynne Holloway.
It is believed she slipped and fell while her date James Oliver was taking pictures of her.
“The boyfriend was taking pictures of her. He looked down to move the tripod stand and when he looked up she was gone,” said Sophiatown Police spokesperson Warrant Officer TJ de Bruyn.
Her boyfriend had arrived from the United Kingdom the day before to visit her. It is believed this was the first time the couple physically met. Their companionship started on an online dating site.
Some residents took to Facebook to express their thoughts on the incident.
“My family and I were actually there when this happened. Big compliments to the emergency services, they were amazing,” said Theresa Mary Sheila Maneli.
Steven Darge said “Though it can’t be said for sure whether alcohol or drugs were involved in this death, I wouldn’t be surprised if either one of them were. Loads of young [people] go up there to smoke the Z and/or get comprehensively smashed.”
Her friend Sarah Silber said “This is so absolutely devastating! Cheynne was the kindest, sweetest most beautiful soul, I remember spending so much time with her back in school and she was such a lovely person…”
Cheynne was a bassist for the band Burning Blue. Her band member expressed their feelings on their Facebook page.
“Our hearts are shattered. The girl everybody loved, our precious friend and more, Cheynne passed away in a tragic hiking accident [on 17 January]. The most beautiful, shining soul has left us. We can’t even think right now. There are simply no words.”
A woman named Michaella (last name not provided) posted on Eye Witness News’ comments thread, “She was standing right on the edge while her boyfriend was taking photos of her. She lost her balance and fell off the side. Her boyfriend [went] down to find her unconscious and breathing shallowly before she stopped breathing,”
According to Michaella, the 21-year-old stopped breathing before paramedics arrived on the scene 40 minutes after the fall.
“It was really hard for anyone else to find a way down to her. As far as I know, she was face down, making it hard to do CPR without moving her.”
