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New York mother and two young children – including five-month-old baby – dead after jumping from Niagara Falls

A New York mother jumped from Niagara Falls with her two young children, including a 5-month-old baby – and all three are dead, police said.

Chianti Means, 33, stepped over the guardrail Monday evening on Luna Island — a popular viewing point above the falls with a drop of nearly 200 feet, according to New York State Police.

Police responded around 9 p.m., with investigators determining the dive was “intentional.”


Police said the mother of two jumped over a popular viewpoint above the falls with a drop of almost 200 feet.
Police said the mother of two jumped over a popular viewpoint above the falls with a drop of almost 200 feet. Spiroview Inc. – stock.adobe.com

“The circumstances are still under investigation,” state troopers said.

Means and her children – 9-year-old Roman Rossman and baby Mecca Means – were residents of Niagara Falls.

Rescue workers were still unable to locate any of the bodies on Wednesday.

The mother worked as a domestic violence counselor and graduated from nearby Buffalo, according to her LinkedIn profile.


Chianti Means was 33 years old when she plunged to her death at Niagara Falls on Tuesday.
Chianti Means was 33 years old when she plunged to her death at Niagara Falls on Tuesday. Facebook

Friends quickly began paying tribute to Means on social media.

“I was speechless and crying and couldn’t sleep at all,” friend Kayshawna Morgane wrote on Facebook. “My heart is broken. Mental health is no joke.”

“I can’t even bear to write a post about her and share memories,” said friend Mich Molina.

“I literally feel sick to my stomach and can’t even deal with the emotions I’m feeling. Just know that she and her children are deeply loved by me and my children,” she added.

“You really never know what someone is going through,” said another, Niesha Eukeya.

Luna Island is one of several popular viewpoints above the New York side of Niagara Falls.

It’s one of the more remote viewpoints in the vast Niagara Falls State Park – separated from the rest of the grounds by a causeway over a river channel – and there’s little more than a chest-high railing separating the platform from the death trap. below.

The area is managed by the New York State Office of Parks and Recreation and is open to visitors 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

According to the state agency, more than 8 million people pass through the park every year.

The deaths were just the latest tragedies at the memorial in recent years.

In 2023, another mother jumped with her son into the Niagara Gorge, near the falls.

That mother died in the fall, but rescuers were able to save the five-year-old boy.

If you are struggling with thoughts of suicide, you can call the 24/7 National Suicide Prevention hotline on 988 or visit SuicidePreventionLifeline.org.