A 21-year-old woman has died in a tragic rope-jumping accident in Brazil after instructors allegedly failed to attach her safety cord before she was pushed from a bridge.
The victim, Maria Eduarda Rodrigues de Freitas, fell about 40 metres (130 feet) from an abandoned bridge known as “Skeleton Bridge” in São Paulo State on Saturday and emergency responders pronounced her dead at the scene.
Authorities have arrested three men involved in the activity and launched an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident.
According to local reports, police are examining whether the suspects could face charges of homicide with eventual intent, a legal classification in Brazil where an individual assumes the risk that their actions could result in death.
Meanwhile, video footage of the incident, which has circulated widely on social media, shows Rodrigues de Freitas being carried to the edge of the bridge by three instructors wearing safety helmets. Two men held her by the arms while another supported her legs before releasing her from the structure.
Moments after she was let go, a bystander can be heard shouting that the safety rope had not been attached.
The instructors were reportedly wearing harnesses connected to a security line, while Rodrigues de Freitas appeared not to have been properly secured before the jump, she was buried on Sunday, a day after the fatal accident.
Rope-jumping is an extreme sport that differs from traditional bungee jumping. Unlike bungee jumping, which uses an elastic cord that creates a vertical bouncing motion, rope-jumping relies on low-stretch climbing ropes that convert a fall into a pendulum-like horizontal swing.
The accident occurred at the abandoned Skeleton Bridge, located between the municipalities of Limeira and Cordeirópolis in the interior of São Paulo State. The bridge has reportedly been out of use for years and falls under the jurisdiction of Brazil’s federal government.
Brazil’s Secretariat of Federal Assets (SPU) said it was prepared to assist authorities investigating the incident.
Meanwhile, the Limeira City Hall announced plans to take legal action against the federal government, accusing it of failing to properly manage and secure the abandoned bridge.
In a statement, the local government said it had repeatedly sought intervention from federal agencies responsible for the area, adding that Rodrigues de Freitas’ death had made the continued neglect of the site “unsustainable and unacceptable.”
