Orlando FreeFall Ride: Adjusted Sensors Factor In Tyre Sampson's Death

ORLANDO, FL — A new report released Monday offers new insight into how a 14-year-old teen fell from an amusement park ride in Florida last month.

The Orlando FreeFall ride, which is taller than the Statue of Liberty, didn't experience any electrical or mechanical failures, a report by Quest Engineering, a forensics company hired by the state, revealed.

Instead, manual adjustments were made to the ride resulting in it being unsafe and leading to the death of Tyre Sampson.

"The report confirms that the manual adjustments had been made to the sensor for the seat in question that allowed the harness' restraint opening to be almost double that of a normal restraint opening range," Florida Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services Nikki Fried said during a news conference Monday.

"These misadjustments allowed the safety lights to illuminate, improperly satisfying the ride's electronic safety mechanisms that allowed the ride to operate even though Sampson was not properly secured in the seat," she continued.

On March 24, 2022, Sampson was riding the FreeFall amusment ride at ICON Park when he fell from the ride on the paver surface below.

He was only 14 but already 6 feet, 5 inches tall and well over 300 pounds when he slipped out of his seat as the ride plunged to the ground at speeds of 75 mph or more.

According to the report, the seat's harness proximity sensor was manually loosened, adjusted and tightened to allow a restraint opening of almost seven inches.

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Prior to the time of the incident, the harness proximity sensor was initially set to within normal restraint opening of almost three inches.

As the ride slowed, Sampson slipped through the gap between the seat and harness, which may have expanded several inches due to inherent seat and harness compliance, according to the report.

The misadjustment of the sensor allowed improperly satisfied the ride's electronic safety mechanisms and allowed the ride to begin even though it was unsafe, the report said.

“While the initial phase of our investigation is complete, we are far from done uncovering all of the facts and factors at play that are needed to inform the next steps," Commissioner Fried said. "As soon as the full investigation is complete, we will immediately make changes to our rules if needed under our existing authorities as well as pursue statutory changes with our legislative partners if necessary to help prevent future tragedies."

The report, which focused on the physical evidence of the ride's failure, added that there were "other potential contributions" to the cause of the incident.

A full review of the ride's design, safety, operation, restraint mechanisms and history is needed, according to the report.

The Florida FreeFall remains closed indefinitely.

Read the full report below: