A woman bungee-jumper in Colombia fell to her death earlier this week after a communication mishap caused her to leap off a bridge as she believed that she had a bungee cord attached to her waist. Yecenia Morales, 25, fell over 150 feet from the viaduct in Amaga, northern Colombia, on Sunday.
The freak accident occurred, as the young lawyer failed to follow the signal of the instructor, which was actually meant for her boyfriend. Morales had travelled to Amaga with her boyfriend to attempt what would have been her first ever jump.
Miscommunication Leads to Tragic Death
Morales and her unnamed boyfriend had traveled to the Amagá viaduct — a popular bungee spot — on an excursion organized by local company Sky Bungee Jumping when the tragic incident happened, according to Newsflash. Sky Bungee Jumping had already oversaw 89 other jumpers that day. As the couple's turn arrived, staff hooked her boyfriend's ankles up with the harness and elasticated tether.
However, the tether was still to be tied on Morales' ankles as her boyfriend was ahead of her in line. Tragedy struck when operators signaled Morales' boyfriend to take the plunge.
Morales misread the signal apparently thinking the cue was meant for her and without thinking twice she leaped off the bridge without an attached safety cord. The young lawyer plummeted about 164 feet to the valley below, Newsflash reported.
Her boyfriend immediately rushed down to help her. He was the first to find her on the ground and desperately tried to perform CPR but Morales had already died by then.
Accident or Carelessness?
Firefighters from Amaga attended and pronounced Morales dead at the scene. "She got confused. The signal was for the boyfriend to jump because he was already attached to the security equipment. They had only put the harness on her so she got confused and rushed," Gustavo Guzmán, the mayor of the municipality of Fredonia, told El Tiempo.
Morales' boyfriend also received injuries when he rushed to rescue her. He is still receiving treatment for his injuries. An investigation has been launched into the incident.
According to preliminary medical reports, along with her injuries inflicted during the fall, Morales may have also suffered a heart attack before she hit the ground. Although authorities don't suspect foul play the investigation has primarily been launched over claims that several companies at the site were unlicensed, according to the Daily Mail.
Morales' family members have since expressed their grief over the deceased woman.
"My sister is a girl with all the best values, happy, spontaneous, with virtues that made her love her friends, and helped the people in need," said her bereaved brother Andres. He added that she loved reading and dancing and had an entrepreneurial spirit.
According to her brother Yecenia was a happy woman who loved reading and dancing and had an entrepreneurial spirit.
