Brazilian Model Dies in Bungee-Style Accident After Safety Harness Was Left Unattached

A 21-year-old Brazilian model, Maria Eduarda Rodrigues de Freitas, died after being thrown from a bridge in Limeira, in São Paulo state, without being connected to the safety rope. New details from the investigation say she was still alive for minutes after the fall from about 40 meters, before she later died.

According to the case file, staff running the attraction at Ponte do Escaloto released her from the bridge without attaching her harness to the rope. Video from the scene shows workers lifting her in a Superman-style position and sending her over the railing, while the unused rope is visible on the ground nearby. Witnesses screamed in panic, but by then she had already fallen.

Raisa Dias, a nurse who was among the first to reach her, said she ran to the victim despite difficult terrain and found a weak pulse. Dias said the young woman briefly responded and that she spoke to her. “I even talked to her,” she said. “I told her, ‘Nobody dies on my shift.’ That’s what I say to all my patients.” Dias gave first aid until rescue teams arrived, but Rodrigues de Freitas was later declared dead.

After the accident, some workers were found to have changed clothes and fled the scene, though they were later arrested. Three instructors, Luis Felipe Feliciano Agorof, Vitor de Freitas Gonsalves, and Maicon Fernandes Sinatra, have been charged with manslaughter. Police are also examining whether the attraction was operating without proper authorization, and a local lawmaker said the company running the site was not licensed to operate there.