"It did not look real": a mother of two dies after slipping to the waterfall

The mother of two young boys was killed Friday when she died of a waterfall in California.

Stephanie Williams, 35, was hiking with her girlfriend at Eagle Falls, near Lake Emerald Bay, at Lake Tahoe, when she lost her footing and broke through the falls, according to the protection district. the fires of North Tahoe.

Williams was the mother of two boys aged 12 and 14, according to her brother, Nick Martinez.

"Stephanie was the core of our family, and growing up, she was more of a mother to me than an older sister," Martinez told ABC News. "Do not have it here for the moment and even try to start your day, we are sort of lost."

Martinez said that his sister did not take a selfie, or photo, at the time of his death, despite a statement from the authorities. The North Tahoe Fire Protection District later made it clear that Espinosa was looking for a tree branch, without taking a photo, when she fell down.

Williams, who worked as a beautician, was one of nine children, Martinez being the only boy. Stephanie was the eldest of her eight sisters.

Martinez said he learned the news by getting his two daughters back to school.

"It was extremely difficult. As soon as they got into my car, I received a call from my mother, who told me that her girlfriend had told her that Stephanie had fallen into a waterfall and that she could not find her. did not seem real. "

He said that he was talking to one of his sisters when he received another call from Stephanie's girlfriend.

"We said," If anyone can do this fall and survive, it's her, because she is a survivor. "So we were praying for her to cling to something or cling to life and be well," Martinez said. "We later learned that they had found her body and that they were doing CPR, but she did not do it."

Eagle Falls is located in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, about two hours east of Sacramento. The falls are divided into two parts, the first about 50 feet high and the lower section about 80 feet.

"It's a sad reminder of caution when taking selfies and other photos in dangerous areas," said the fire department. "Do not underestimate the power of waterfalls, rivers and cold temperatures."

Martinez said that his sister was a "free spirit" and had recently started a new business and had become gay: "She simply invited life after that, she left her husband and became very, very adventurous."

"When I think back to my most distant memory of life, it's her," Martinez said. "When we were kids, our mother was not really in the picture and we bounced a lot when we were kids, so she became the mother figure and really protected me from everything that grew up – and at the same time. 39, adulthood … Stephanie treated everyone as if she were their mother. "

ABC A & Tom Austen contributed to this report.