A 21-year-old model who died after a bungee jump where the safety cord was not attached was reportedly still alive after hitting the ground, according to the nurse who tried to save her.
Details of the Incident
Maria Eduarda Rodrigues de Freitas fell 130 feet to her death in front of horrified witnesses in Limeira, São Paulo, Brazil. Videos show her being carried horizontally by her arms and legs in a 'Superman' pose at the top of Ponte do Esqueleto, an abandoned railway bridge. The workers appeared unaware that she was not connected to the main rope.
After she was thrown off, instructors look down as the camera pans to show the safety line still lying on the platform. Now, the nurse who tried to save her has said she was initially alive when she reached her.
Rayza Dias said, 'I scraped my whole hand because there's a steep slope down there and only one rope for us to climb down.' Once Dias reached Rodrigues de Freitas, she had a weak pulse and was breathing heavily.
Legal Proceedings
The men accused of not attaching the safety rope fled after realising their mistake before they were located and arrested in a nearby woodland. Maicon Fernandes Cintra, 42, Luis Felipe Feliciano Egoroff, 32, and Vitor de Freitas Goncalves, 27, said they 'can't remember' who should have put the safety rope on. They've been charged with homicide.
The city of Limeira said they're looking to take legal action against the Brazilian Government for failing to monitor access to the old railway bridge where the bungee jumps operated.
Family's Grief
Rodrigues de Freitas' mother said after her funeral: 'That damned rope took you away from me forever. My beloved daughter, you are gone, and all that remains here is pain and longing. I will love you forever.'
Ms Rodrigues de Freitas had uploaded a string of social media posts before the trip, excited about the jump and sharing pictures of the venue. 'Who was the crazy person who let me jump off a bridge?' she wrote beside a photograph of an Entre Cordas banner.
The jump appeared to involve bungee jump-rope operator Entre Cordas and Ih Voei, a linked instructor brand. Entre Cordas's Instagram page, which advertised 'a jump to the extraordinary,' was reportedly taken down after the death.
