A daredevil British influencer has died after falling from Spain’s highest bridge.
The 26-year digital creator, who has not been named by police, is said to have plunged from the 630ft Castilla-La Mancha bridge in Talavera de la Reina, around 90 minuntes south-west, at 7:15am on Sunday.
He was accompanied by a 24-year-old Englishman who was unharmed but is in a ‘state of shock’, according to local police.
Footage from the scene of the tragedy showed police cordoning off the area near to where he fell.
Both police and firefighters rushed to the scene following news of the accident, but there was nothing they could do to save him.
A spokesman for National Police in Toledo, the province Talavera de la Reina is part of, said: ‘He was about 40 to 50 metres up, around a quarter of the total height of the bridge, when he fell.
‘The reason he fell is not clear and will be investigated by a local court.’
A source close to the investigation said: ‘Both the dead man and the companion that survived were climbing without any harnesses or other protection.
‘A passing motorist raised the alarm.
‘The other lad was in a state of shock initially and couldn’t even speak. He’s obviously still pretty traumatised but is not at the police station any longer.
He’s not going to be charged with any crime. Whether the local town hall decides to sanction him for doing something illegal is a decision for them.’
The Castilla-La Mancha bridge where the incident occurred is the second-highest in Europe, as well as being the highest in Spain.
Investigators are expected to look into the possibility bad weather played a part in what happened as it is thought to have rained heavily in Talavera de la Reina before the tragedy, making everything more slippery than it normally would have been.
It was not immediately clear last night whether the two Brits had travelled to Spain solely to make the bridge climb they wanted to film, but they had been using a rental car to get around.
Local councillor Macarena Munoz confirmed the tragedy and said accessing the bridge was ‘totally banned.’
She added: ‘We have made it clear on several occasions that it’s not something that can be done in any circumstances.’
Talavera de la Reina Town Council confirmed in a statement: ‘The Councillor for Citizen Security, Macarena Munoz, has confirmed the death of a young man after he fell from the Castilla-La Mancha bridge.
‘He was a 26-year-old Englishman who fell while climbing the aforementioned bridge, something which the councillor has made clear is totally prohibited and that we have reiterated on numerous occasions cannot be done under any circumstances.’
‘The young man was accompanied by another 24-year-old Englishman.
‘According to what we have been able to establish they had come to Talavera to climb the bridge and create content for social media, which has resulted in this unfortunate and sad outcome.’
‘The judge and the forensic doctor have already authorised the removal of the body, which has been transferred to the funeral parlour.’
A post-mortem is yet to take place.
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