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Man falls 40ft to his death after slipping while taking a selfie on rock ledge at Brazilian beauty spot
- The logistics analyst was at beach celebrating news of new job when he fell
- He died after hitting his head on a rock beneath the one he fell from
- Fire department spokesperson warned not to ‘risk your life for likes’
A 33-year-old man plunged nearly 40ft to his death after he lost his balance while taking a selfie in Brazil.
Logistics analyst Igor de Oliveira Rodrigues Dias fell from a rock overlooking Joatinga Beach in Rio de Janeiro on the afternoon of November 10.
He was trying to take a selfie when he fell from a height of around 40 ft and was killed when he hit his head on another rock below, local media reported.
Logistics analyst Igor de Oliveira Rodrigues Dias (pictured) fell from a rock in Brazil on the afternoon of November 10 after he lost his balance while taking a selfie
His devastated mother, 60-year-old Luiza Rodrigues, said: ‘In the morning he had signed a contract with a company he wanted to work for. So he went out with a friend to have a little celebration on the beach.
‘I talked to him, asked where he was. He replied that he was on the beach. But I don’t know why he decided to climb that high rock.’
Firefighters were dispatched to the scene but pronounced Igor dead before using a helicopter to remove his body from the spot.
Igor was a graduate of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and had two post-graduate qualifications.
His mother told local media: ‘He was an only child, he studied, he had a whole life ahead of him.’
His grieving father, Jonas Dias, said: ‘He died before me, and I don’t accept that. I think that every son has to bury his father, and not the father bury his son. It was a tragedy.’
Dias fell from a rock overlooking Joatinga Beach (pictured) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil last week
Rio de Janeiro Fire Department spokesman Fabio Contreiras said: ‘We always have to be safe, never get close to the edge of the rocks, ask someone to take a picture, if necessary.
‘Always seek safety first. Don’t risk your life for likes.’
A Spanish study published last year showed that between January 2008 and July 2021, one person died every 13 days in an accident while trying to capture a landscape.
Brazil registered the fifth-highest number of incidents.