How far did the boy fall at Icon Park?

He fell at least 100 feet onto the hard pavement from the ride, which had no seat belts, according to a wrongful death lawsuit filed one month after his death. Tyre's mother Nekia Dodd visited the amusement park for the first time since her son's death on Wednesday to see the towering ride be dismantled.



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Tyre Sampson died on March 24, 2022, after falling out of his seat on the 400-foot-tall ride at Icon Park in Orlando, where he was visiting with his football team for spring break.

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ORLANDO, Fla. — Standing in front of the Orlando Free Fall drop tower where her 14-year-old son Tyre Sampson lost his life nearly a year ago, Nekia Dodd and her lawyer announced Wednesday they had reached a settlement with ride owner Orlando Slingshot and landlord ICON Park in the civil lawsuit over Tyre's death.

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Tyre's death garnered national attention and cast new scrutiny on amusement park rides and their safety measures. He suffered broken bones and internal injuries in the fall, according to his autopsy, and his death was ruled accidental. Tyre weighed 383 pounds, per the autopsy, above the ride limit of about 285 pounds.

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Identified only as Ivan, he was the source of the gruesome video that showed 14-year-old Tyre Sampson's fall from the thrill ride. That very same video circulated widely following Sampson's death, getting to Sampson's father before official news of his passing.

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An operations manual published by the Orlando Free Fall ride's manufacturer lists the weight limit as 130 kg, or about 287 pounds—meaning Sampson exceeded the maximum passenger weight by nearly 100 pounds.

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The Orlando FreeFall drop tower in ICON Park in Orlando, Florida, is pictured on March 28, 2022. The owner's manual for the tower lists the ride's weight limit at 287 pounds. Tyre was just over 6 feet tall and weighed 383 pounds, according to the autopsy report.

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Tyre Sampson plummeted to his death from the Orlando FreeFall drop tower in ICON Park on March 24 – a ride described by its operators as the world's tallest freestanding drop tower. Bystander video showed the teen slipping from his seat seconds after the ride began its nearly 400-foot drop.

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Tyre Sampson, 14, 'knew something was wrong with his harness and was freaking out' before Icon theme park fall, dad says. THE dad of a teen boy who died falling from a theme park ride said his son knew his safety harness was not fitted right.

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As part of a settlement, Orlando Slingshot paid a $250,000 fine to FDACS and has agreed to never again operate the drop tower in Florida and will not reapply for a permit to do so in the future. It has been the wish of Sampson's parents to have the Orlando FreeFall taken down.

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