Tyrese Sampson

Tyrese+Sampson

Brooke Edgington, True Crime Writer

14-year-old Tyrese Sampson, from St. Louis, Missouri, died Thursday night after he fell from the Freefall drop tower ride at ICON park in Orlando, Florida. Sampson went with his friend’s family to Orlando for spring break, and they decided to go to the amusement park.

Tyrese and his friends got onto the Freefall ride, which takes riders to the top of a 430-foot tower, tilts them face-first to the ground, and falls at the speed of up to 75 mph. Before the ride even started, Tyrese told his friends that he wasn’t tied in and that if anything happens, tell his family that he loves them.

As the ride started making its way down, Tyrese slipped out hitting the ground face-first. A man who witnessed the incident told a 911 dispatcher that Sampson seemed to slip out of his seat when the ride braked as it approached the bottom. The ride then began its trek up the tower before someone was later seen falling from the ride.

“Bam, he went straight through his chair and dropped,” the man said on the 911 call, “It was the biggest smack I ever heard in my life, I saw him hit the ground.”

A woman who called 911 told a dispatcher that Sampson was facedown, wasn’t responsive, and appeared to have broken his arms and legs. Another man told a 911 dispatcher that the teen had no pulse. A video aired by NBC’s “Today” shows passengers on the ride discussing issues with a seat restraint Thursday night.

“This family is shocked and heartbroken at the loss of their son,” Crump said. “This young man was the kind of son every parent hopes for. He was an honor roll student, an aspiring athlete, and a kind-hearted person who cared about others. Needless to say, his family is absolutely devastated.”

Sheriff investigators will determine whether the incident was an accident or intentional, and from an initial investigation, “It appears to be a terrible tragedy,” Orange County Sheriff John Mina said.

“The ride will be closed for the foreseeable future and will not re-open until all questions are answered as part of the ongoing FDACS investigations,” the report said.