Officials awaiting full autopsy to determine circumstances of deadly fall

By Vanessa Harmoush in Campus, Front Page, News on Oct 8, 2011 3:38 / comments

Boulder City officials are waiting on the autopsy of a woman who fell onto Baseline from the U.S. Highway 36 bridge during CU’s family weekend to help determine the circumstances of the incident.

According to a news release from Boulder County Coroner, on Sept. 30 around 3:15 p.m., a woman, now identified as Yelizaveta Gorstko, fell or jumped off the U.S. 36 overpass onto Baseline. She experienced life-threatening injuries and was confirmed dead on Oct. 3.

“The 32-year-old woman of Aurora, died [Oct. 3] at Boulder Community Hospital,” the release stated.

“We received several calls from witnesses saying that a women had fallen from the Highway 36 overpass onto Baseline into traffic lanes of Baseline, but she was not hit by any cars when she fell,” Kim Kobel, Boulder Police Department spokesperson, said.

Boulder Police investigate the scene where a female jumped from the Highway 36 overpass onto Baseline Road, Friday, Sept. 30, 2011. (CU Independent/Robert R. Denton)

It is still unknown by officials if the woman jumped onto the overpass or had fallen onto it.

“No one witnessed any cause when she fell. People didn’t witness what happened to her to cause her to fall,” Kobel said.

The coroner’s office said they will perform a biopsy on Gorstko.

Hali Kolkind, a 19-year-old sophomore political science major, said the event is a gentle reminder of always being aware of your surroundings.

“It’s a tragedy and it makes you realize how simple situations could be a tragedy,” Kolkind said. “Even walking down the road is a dangerous event. It makes me take precautions in life that I may not have thought of before.”

This incident happened during CU’s annual family weekend when many parents were driving to campus during the time of the accident.

Paige Martin, an 18 year-old freshman integrated physiology major, saw the aftermath of the accident while in her dorm in Williams Village.

“I saw parts of the accident, like the ambulance,” Martin said. “I was really confused at first because I didn’t know what happened.”

Kolkind said she was in the car with her parents who were visiting from Minnesota that Friday afternoon.

“I was sitting in my car when it happened and it made me frustrated that traffic was moving so slow,” Kolkind said. “I didn’t know what was happening but when I found out, it made me realize that my frustration wasn’t the answer.”Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Vanessa Harmoush at Vanessa.harmoush@colorado.edu.

Yeah parts of it. I was really confused at first because I didn’t know what happene