An amusement park in Florida has begun work to remove a 430-foot-tall ride where a 14-year-old boy fell to his death last year.
Tyre Sampson, of Missouri, died while he visited Orlando’s ICON Park during a visit on March 24, 2022.
An accident report released shortly after the incident said Sampson came out of his seat after boarding the park’s Orlando FreeFall ride attraction. The report noted that Sampson’s “harness was still in a down and locked position when the ride stopped.”
Almost a year to the incident’s anniversary, Nekia Dodd, Sampson’s mother, visited the park for the first time as demolition work began on the ride.
In a press conference streamed by Fox 35, Dodd spoke candidly about her son’s death, stating: “My son took his last breath on this ride, so it’s heartbreaking, it’s devastating, it’s a feeling I hope no other parent will ever have to go through after this ride comes down,” Dodd said. “When he passed, I wasn’t there for him.”
After the incident, Dodd and Yarnell Sampson, Tyre’s father, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the amusement park, the SlingShot Group (which owns the ride), ride manufacturer Fun Time Thrill Rides, and Gerstlauer Amusement Rides, which manufactured the seats and harnesses.
During Wednesday’s press conference, Dodd, accompanied by her attorney Michael Haggard, shared that an undisclosed settlement has been reached between the park and Slingshot Group.
Speaking to the decision to demolish the ride, ICON Park shared in a statement to Fox 35: “ While the FreeFall ride is not owned and was not controlled or operated by ICON Park, because it is a tenant on the property, we agree with the owner’s decision to dismantle the ride, and our hearts are with the family as they witness this important milestone.”
Orlando Slingshot announced last October that they decided to take down the attraction following “the accidental death of Tyre Sampson.”
“We are devastated by Tyre’s death. We have listened to the wishes of Tyre’s family and the community and have made the decision to take down the FreeFall,” Orlando Slingshot’s Ritchie Armstrong told PEOPLE at the time.
