Maria Eduarda Rodrigues De Freitas, 21, died on Saturday after staff at a bungee-jumping event in Limeira, São Paulo, pushed her from the Skeleton Bridge without attaching a safety rope. Medics pronounced her dead at the scene after a fall of about 130 feet, or 40 meters, into a ravine.
Six people connected to the event, five men and one woman, were taken into custody after the death. The Civil Police is now investigating whether those arrested will face criminal charges, while witnesses told Military Police that workers had apparently forgotten to tie her to a safety cord before the push.
Skeleton Bridge in Limeira
Freitas had posted images from the bridge before the incident, showing the setup, equipment, other participants and a banner for Entre Cordas. In one post from the bridge, she wrote: "Who was the crazy person that let me jump off a bridge???"
She was carried onto the platform by two men before she was shoved from the edge. Bystanders yelled that she did not have a rope tied to her, and some organizers reportedly ran from the scene shortly after she fell.
Civil Police investigation
Authorities later located two organizers who had fled with the aid of a police helicopter that surveyed woodland next to the bridge. The case now turns on what the Civil Police determines about the actions of the six people already taken into custody.
Freitas's fiancé was receiving medical treatment after becoming ill on hearing of her death. The investigation is expected to sort out whether the failure to attach the rope was an individual mistake or something broader inside the event's operation at the Skeleton Bridge.
