A 26-year-old British man has tragically died after falling from the Castilla-La Mancha bridge, Spain’s tallest bridge, while attempting to climb one of its pylons for a social media video, CNN reports.
The incident occurred on the bridge, which crosses the River Tagus outside the town of Talavera de la Reina in central Spain. Local councillor Macarena Muñoz confirmed that the man was accompanied by another British man, aged 24, and that they had come to Talavera specifically to climb the bridge and create content for social media.
“According to what we have been able to find out, they had come to Talavera to climb the bridge and create content for social media,” Muñoz stated in a statement released by the town council.
She emphasized that climbing the bridge is strictly prohibited and that the town council has repeatedly warned against it.
The cable-stayed bridge, completed in 2010, stands at 1591 feet tall with a main span measuring 1,043 feet. The man’s body was taken to a funeral home, though local authorities have not released his name.
This tragic event highlights the growing trend of people risking their lives for social media content. In recent years, numerous deaths have been reported involving people attempting dangerous stunts for online attention.
In 2020, a woman in Australia fell off a cliff while posing for a photo at a scenic lookout. Similarly, in 2019, a French tourist died after falling from a waterfall in Thailand while attempting to take a selfie.