A 24-year-old California State University, Stanislaus student died from an apparent fall while hiking in Yosemite National Park on Friday.

The National Park Service at Yosemite has identified the deceased as Tyler Tompkins.

Park spokesman Scott Gediman said the incident is still under investigation, but all evidence so far indicates Tompkins’s death was caused by an accidental fall.

Tompkins had been working for a short time at the Yosemite Association’s wilderness center issuing permits for back-country hiking, Gediman said.

Gediman said Tompkins went out hiking alone after he got off work on Friday afternoon. A pair of rock climbers discovered his body in the Yosemite Falls area on Monday. The area Tompkins was found in is not one of the more remote areas of the park, but it is also not a heavily trafficked area, Gediman said.

CSU Stanislaus confirmed Tompkins had been a student at the university in fall 2009 and had been an agricultural studies major. His hometown is Valenica.

To contact Sabra Stafford, e-mail sstafford@turlockjournal.com or call 634-9141 ext. 2002.