A photographer who died while taking pictures inside a storm drain in Philadelphia is being mourned by other ‘urban explorers’ who take photos of abandoned and hard-to-reach places.
Thirty-year-old Rebecca Bunting was swept away by the waters of the Pennypack Creek in the northeastern part of the city during a flash flood on Saturday.
She had been taking photos with her boyfriend, who called 911 for help when she disappeared.
Thirty-year-old Rebecca Bunting was swept away by Pennypack Creek in the northeastern part of the city during a flash flood on Saturday
Her body was recovered the next day near the Frankford Avenue Bridge in Holmesburg at approximately 10.45am Sunday.
Buntings body had been trapped under furniture left in the creek and was believed to have died on Saturday when she was knocked out.
Her boyfriend, had been witness to the death but had been able to pull himself out of the way of harm.
She had been taking photos with her boyfriend, who called 911 for help when she disappeared
He had to be taken to the hospital with minor injuries.
A fellow urban explorer, Carly Weiss, tells Philly.com that Bunting was a ‘queen’ in the community of thrill-seeking photographers.
Many posted tributes on Instagram, where Bunting was known for photos of dilapidated hospitals, run-down amusement parks and other scenes of eerie emptiness.
Her body was recovered the next day near the Frankford Avenue Bridge in Holmesburg at approximately 10.45am Sunday
‘She was always trying to get really cool photos. She’s really talented. She could bring out beauty in any landscape,’ friend Cristen DeDomenico said to 6 ABC.
Weiss said those photos now provide solace to many of Bunting’s friends.
‘We’re always going to have Becca’s photos and the photos we took of her,’ she said. ‘Becca is going to live forever because of this.’
Among the final photos Bunting posted was an image of a sunset viewed through an archway. Alongside it she wrote: ‘If there is life after death, I want to come back as a sunset. Ain’t much else more beautiful than that.’
Among the final photos Bunting posted was an image of a sunset viewed through an archway. Alongside it she wrote: ‘If there is life after death, I want to come back as a sunset. Ain’t much else more beautiful than that’