Australian killed after ancient ruins path collapses

Posted Thu Jan 24, 2008 1:10am AEDT
Updated Thu Jan 24, 2008 9:46am AEDT

A 21-year old Australian man has been killed in an accident in southern Jordan.

David Burnett suffered multiple head injuries when a cliff path he was walking on collapsed in the ruins of Petra.

Mr Burnett, on holiday in Jordan, was a former vice-president of the Australasian Union of Jewish Students (AUJS).

In a statement on the AUJS website, president Jessica Roth paid tribute to Mr Burnett.

"Dave was an inspiration to all who knew him and will be greatly missed. His passing will leave a huge void in the Jewish community, AUJS and our personal lives," she said.

The AUJS extended its deepest condolences to Mr Burnett's family and friends and said it is planning to hold a commemoration ceremony in coming weeks.

In the meantime, the AUJS invited people who knew Mr Burnett to come to Shalom College at the University of New South Wales in Sydney this Friday, January 25 at 1:30pm AEDT, to share memories and provide support to each other.

Mr Burnett was an Arts/Law student at the University of Sydney and attended Killara High School, graduating in 2003.

The ancient archaeological site is visited by hundreds of thousands of tourists annually.