A 14-year-old fell to his death from the new drop tower ride at Florida’s ICON Park, authorities say | CNN 💥💥💥

CNN
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A 14-year-old boy died after he fell Thursday night from a drop tower amusement ride that recently opened at the Orlando area’s ICON Park entertainment complex, authorities said.

Witnesses said the boy fell from the Orlando FreeFall ride, described by its operators as the world’s tallest freestanding drop tower, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office said.

Deputies were called to ICON Park around 11 p.m. The boy was taken to a hospital, where he died from his injuries, the sheriff’s office said. He was identified by authorities as Tyre Sampson of Missouri. Details about what led to the fall were not immediately released.

The boy was secured in the ride’s seat, an official with the company that operates the ride told CNN affiliate Spectrum News 13.

“Yes (he was secured in the seat). That’s what we know at this time. So again, we operate the ride with all the safety precautions in mind and everything is in place and this is why we’re doing an investigation,” John Stine, sales and marketing director for the Slingshot Group, told Spectrum News 13.

The Slingshot Group operates the FreeFall, a 430-foot-tall tower and ride. It will be closed “until further notice,” Slingshot Group spokesperson Brooke Jones said Friday morning. The company also operates two other rides at the park.

The FreeFall has a vehicle encircling the tower that takes up to 30 riders to the structure’s top.

“Once the ride vehicle reaches the top, it’ll tilt forward 30 degrees and face the ground before free falling nearly 400 feet at speeds reaching over 75 mph,” ICON Park’s website says.

Stine declined Friday morning to answer reporters’ questions about what led to the fall.

“Our hearts are broken for that family of the young man. We’re going to do everything we can to work with the investigative authorities to get to the matter of this,” Stine said.

The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services will have inspectors at the site Friday “with our investigation underway,” department spokesperson Caroline Stonecipher told CNN. The department has statewide responsibility to inspect all amusement rides in Florida, except for those at large parks that have more than 1,000 employees and have full-time inspectors on staff.

CNN has sought comment from park officials, plus further comment and FreeFall ride inspection records from the Agriculture Department.

ICON Park includes a variety of offerings, including rides such as a 400-foot-tall observation wheel; Madame Tussauds Orlando; and SEA LIFE Orlando Aquarium.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story misspelled the victim’s name based on information from authorities.