Truly tragic and horrifying news coming from ICON Park in Orlando, FL last night. A 14 year old boy has fallen to his death from the Free Fall ride. The Free Fall opened in December 2021.

According to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, they received a call just after 11 pm last night. They say the investigation is in the early stages. An ambulance transported the teen boy to a hospital where he died from his injuries. He has not yet been identified.

From a press release when the ride opened, “The Orlando SlingShot and Orlando FreeFall are owned and operated by The Slingshot Group, Keator Construction, LLC is the general contractor responsible for building these landmark attractions. The manufacturer of the rides is Funtime.” “The Orlando FreeFall™ at ICON Park stands at 430 feet, making it the world’s tallest free-standing drop tower. Thirty riders at a time can embrace the beautiful sites of ICON Park and I-Drive as the ride vehicle rotates around the gigantic tower and rises high into the skyline. Once the ride vehicle reaches the top, it’ll tilt forward 30 degrees and face the ground for a brief moment before free falling nearly 400 feet at speeds reaching over 75 mph.”

The Slingshot Group director of sales and marketing is John Stine. He said the ride will be closed indefinitely. “Our hearts go out to the family of this young man,” Stein said. “Our hearts are broken today.”

“Yes (he was secured in the seat). That’s what we know at this time. So again, we operate the ride with all the safety precautions in mind and everything is in place and this is why we’re doing an investigation,” Stine said to Spectrum News 13.

A worker fell to his death at ICON Park in September 2020.

After seeing the video that was posted to Facebook by J***** G*******, I’d say it was more like he was thrown because the ride is going to fast. It’s horrifying to watch, so I suggest you click it at your own risk.

**I’m pulling the video. While it shows the reactions of the people nearby to get help, it’s just too much. This is a horrible tragedy all the way around and I feel posting it was a mistake on my part. My sincerest apologies.**

I feel absolutely horrible for this kid and his family and for everyone who witnessed this tragedy. It’s just devastating.

I’m not a big thrill-seeker, so rides like this aren’t for me. People have asked me if I’d ever ride the swings at ICON and I’ve always said no because I’d be the person that the chains break on and I’d end up on I-4. Incidents like this only confirm that I will not be doing them.

**UPDATE** The OCSO has identified the teen as Tyre Sampson from Missouri. He was in Orlando with a friend’s family. “And based on all of our preliminary investigation information, it appears to be a terrible tragedy, but our investigation is still open,” Sheriff John Mina said.

AJ Jones, who is Sampson’s youth football coach, described the “humble giant” as a straight-A student and respectable young man who had dreams of making it to the NFL after college. He said he was set to be the starting offensive lineman at East St. Louis High School in the fall.

**UPDATE 4:40 PM** State inspectors from the Florida Department of Agriculture are investigating. Two other rides operated by The Slingshot Group, The Starflyer and The SlingShot, will also be closed during the death investigation.

**UPDATE 4:59 PM** News 6 ClickOrlando provided audio of the 911 call.

**UPDATE 03/26/2022** ICON Park put out a statement last night.
“A Statement from ICON Park: Tonight the ICON Park family is grieving because of the tragedy involving Tyre Sampson. Our heartfelt thoughts are with his family and friends. ICON Park is committed to being a place where families can spend quality time together in a safe and fun space. We are in close coordination and will continue to cooperate with law enforcement and regulators regarding our tenant, the SlingShot Group. We will continue to keep you updated on ICONParkOrlando.com. If you have any comments or concerns, please email Comments@ICONParkOrlando.com.”

**UPDATE 03/28/2022 2:02 PM** A balloon release is planned for tonight at 6 PM at ICON Park. Organizers will be releasing red and black balloons to honor Tyre Sampson. A makeshift memorial has been growing at the park.

**UPDATE 03/29/2022 9:10 AM** An accident report from the state says that the Free Fall ride did not malfunction. The harness was still in the down and locked position when the ride stopped. According to the ride manual the maximum weight for a rider is 286 pounds. Sampson’s father said he was about 60 pounds heavier than that. His family stated he was turned away from two other rides for being to large. Another part of the manual said large people should fit into the seat and the harness should fit properly, otherwise they should not ride.

**UPDATE 04/01/2022 11:18 AM** A woman who has been seen holding news conferences, collecting petition signatures, and holding a vigil for Tyre Sampson and claimed to be his cousin has been found to hold no relation to the boy’s family. The woman says her name is Shay Johnson. The family says they have no idea who she is. The OCSO says they aren’t aware of any crimes being committed at this point. The woman’s employer, Flash Dancer’s Bar in Orlando, said in a statement they have terminated her employment.

I’d like to say this is a horrible thing to do. There is no reason anyone should be claiming to be part of this family and going on the news about it.

**UPDATE 04/01/2022 1:15 PM** At a news conference this morning, Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services Nikkie Fried said investigators aren’t going to jump to any conclusions about the accident until the investigation is complete. She said state leaders have hired a team of forensic engineers from Quest Engineering and Failure Analysis.

**UPDATE 04/19/2022** You can read more of the findings on the seat here.