Tragedy has struck Denmark’s Roskilde Festival for the second time, with a fan falling to their death from an aerial walkway tower at the event, bringing back memories of the tragic crowd crush in which 9 people died while Pearl Jam played back in 2000. The 30 metre high tower is understood to have been part of an aerial ride at the festival and it is believed that the 35 year old woman from Berlin in Germany had climbed over a safety fence and had fallen or leapt off a platform. Headlined this year by Arctic Monkeys, PJ Harvey, Iron Maiden and Kings of Leon; the festival attracts up to 75,000 punters each year. A festival statement on their website reads:
Today there has been a deeply tragic falling accident from the tower by the aerial cableway at Roskilde Festival.
The police have identified the person as a 35-year-old woman from the Berlin area. On their website the police state that nothing suggests that this was an act of crime. Witnesses saw the woman step out on a platform outside the fence from where she fell down. The police are of the opinion that it was an unfortunate incident.
The woman’s relatives have not been informed of the death yet, and therefore the police cannot give more details about the woman.
The police have examined the place carefully at the assistance of The Danish Working Environment Service, and the investigation has not given rise to any remarks from the service regarding the construction of the tower.
Further updates on the event’s Facebook page suggests that they are now struggling to identify the victim, with organisers pleading with women at the festival to contact worried families who have been inundating organisers with calls, and for people still on site to contact them if a friend is missing. Check out their Facebook request here.
