A New York mother and her two young children tragically died after she jumped from a viewpoint near Niagara Falls, police reported. Her final post shared on social media is heartbreaking.
Chianti Means, 33, went over the guardrail on Luna Island, a popular observation point overlooking the falls with a nearly 200-foot drop, late Monday night, according to New York State Police.
Authorities received a call around 9 p.m. and have since determined that the fall was “intentional,” though the “circumstances remain under investigation,” state troopers stated.
Means and her children, 9-year-old Roman Rossman and 5-month-old Mecca Means, lived in Niagara Falls. Despite extensive search efforts, rescuers had not yet recovered any of their bodies as of Wednesday.
@veezraw NY mom wrote before jumping to death at Niagara Falls with 2 kids revealed, ‘I want my family back #veezraw #crime #news #fyp #newyork #niagarafalls #heartbroken
A New York State Police officer shared; “We’ve come to the conclusion that a 33-year-old mother, a nine-year-old, and then a five-month-old were all gone over the falls.”
“We do believe it was intentional but the circumstances of that investigation and the circumstances of what actually happened are still under investigation,” they continued. “But we know that they went over due to the information from park police and some of the information we were able to obtain through multiple different sources in and around Niagara Falls and pieces of evidence we were able to come across in search warrants.”
Friends quickly took to social media to pay tribute to Means. “I have been speechless and crying and couldn’t sleep at all,” shared Kayshawna Morgane on Facebook. “My heart is broken. Mental health is no joke.” Another friend, Mich Molina, expressed, “I am literally sick to my stomach and I can’t even deal with the emotions I am feeling. Just know her and her children are dearly loved by me and my children.”
“They went there and they never came out. So that’s where we’re at. […] Like I said there’s a lot of safety railings, a lot of security measures at the state park so it’s not something where they just stumbled in.”
Luna Island, one of several overlooks on the New York side of Niagara Falls, is a secluded spot within Niagara Falls State Park, accessible by a causeway over a river channel. The overlook has only a chest-high railing between the platform and the sheer drop to the falls below. Managed by the New York State Office of Parks and Recreation, the park is open to visitors around the clock and welcomes over 8 million visitors annually.
This tragedy follows a similar incident in 2023 when another mother leaped with her young son into the Niagara Gorge, just downstream from the falls. She did not survive the fall, but rescuers managed to save her five-year-old son. According to her LinkedIn profile, Means had worked as a domestic violence counselor and was a graduate of a nearby school in Buffalo.
Her last posts on social media were heartbreaking. She shared last month; “I wish someone would love me because the man that’s suppose [sic] to does not.”
A few days after, she shared a photo on Instagram that read: “Sick of irritation, anger, sadness and rage.”
On October 1, she shared; “Everyone please leave me alone I’m in love with my daughter’s father,” also adding: “I want my family back. Respectfully Idga* what I said about him before or what anyone else thinks.”
Heartbreaking, RIP
