Man falls to his death after slipping while taking a selfie on rock ledge at Brazilian beauty spot

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.