The upstate New York woman who leapt over a guardrail and into Niagara Falls, along with her child and baby, are all presumed dead, New York State Police said Thursday.
Chianti Means, 33, was the mother of the two kids she took with her when she jumped off an overlook at Luna Island at around 9 p.m. Monday, in a leap authorities said was “intentional in nature.”
A search has been under way since the incident, but their bodies had not been found as of Thursday. However, police said Means, 9-year-old Roman Rossman and 5-month-old Mecca Means, all of Niagara Falls, N.Y., are assumed dead.
The small island she jumped from is an offshoot of Goat Island, sandwiched between the American Falls and Bridal Veil Falls.
The search continued Thursday for their bodies, aided by drones, aircraft, underwater units and marine patrols, state troopers said. Several agencies were assisting in the investigation as well, including the Niagara Falls Police Department and Niagara Charter Schools, state police said in an update on Wednesday.