Teen dies after horror plunge off bridge he climbed for a social media video

25 May 2023 , 02:06

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A 17-year old boy has fallen to his death from LA's 6th Street Viaduct (Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)

A teenager who plunged to his death from a Los Angeles bridge was preparing to broadcast a stunt on social media, the LAPD has said.

Police were sent to the city's 6th Street Viaduct at around 2 am on Saturday (May 20), where they discovered a 17-year old boy, who was later pronounced dead in a local hospital.

Chief Michel Moore told a meeting of the Los Angeles Police Commission on Tuesday that the youngster slipped and fell "when climbing upon one of the arches, in order to post, apparently, a social media broadcast".

The $588-million structure, which connects Downtown to the historic Eastside over the Los Angeles River, only opened in July last year, when it replaced its 84-year-old Art Deco predecessor.

The bridge - the largest and most expensive ever constructed in LA - was designed to become a landmark of the city, incorporating thousands of LED lights and glorious views of the skyline.

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Dusk on the 6th Street bridge (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

According to cops, however, the bridge has already been forced to close on several occasions after becoming a hotspot for street racing and graffiti. Illegal takeovers at the location, meanwhile, have seen hundreds of spectators gather to watch drivers perform dangerous stunts in their vehicles.

Another tragic incident saw a man fatally shot on the bridge earlier this year during the unauthorised filming of a music video, according to the Associated Press.

"Tragically we see that location, while it has spawned a great deal of pride in Los Angeles, it has also unfortunately served as a backdrop now for tragedies such as this," Moore told the Police Commission.

"Our added patrols will continue at that location - to counter such reckless actions."

Alan Johnson