A 14-year-old American teenager has died after falling from a 131-meter (430-foot) free-fall tower in Florida.
The accident happened at ICON amusement park in Orlando, Florida, USA, on March 25. The victim, Tire Sampson, 14-year-old, died at the hospital.
“At first we thought it was debris from a seat or something, but we found a person lying on the ground when we approached. Everyone was panicking and screaming,” said Montrey Williams, an employee at the park.
The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, which oversees extreme games, has launched an investigation and examination of the scene.
The 131-meter (430-foot) Orlando Free Fall tower opened in December 2021 and has been described as “the tallest free-fall tower in the world”. It can take 30 passengers at a time and take them to the top of the tower, then free-fall at 120 km/h (74.5 mph).
The park has announced the indefinite closure of the Orlando Free Fall tower. The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) reports that the rate of serious injury while playing adventure games in the US is 1/5.5 million.
