Owen Hart (lost death footage of professional wrestler; 1999)
| DISCLAIMER: |
|---|
| THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN TAGGED AS NSFL DUE TO ITS DISTURBING SUBJECT MATTER. |
On May 23, 1999, wrestler Owen Hart fell from the rafters of an arena in Kansas City, MO during WWF Over The Edge 1999 while doing a stunt where he was to be lowered into the ring by harness. The harness subsequently broke, and he fell 24 meters, chest first onto the top rope, flinging him violently into the ring. The impact of the fall severely wounded him, and he later died at the hospital from blunt force trauma to the chest.
A YouTube user by the name of Chris Breseman said that he was in attendance and witnessed the fall, who said that Hart's "body folded like a f**king accordion."
The fall did not occur on live Pay Per View; an interview with Hart as The Blue Blazer that was recorded in the backstage area earlier in the day was playing as the tragedy occurred.
However, since WWF cameras were rolling at the time of the accident, footage of Hart's fatal fall exists on tape; this was confirmed in a column written by former WWF announcer Kevin Kelly in May 2013.[1] According to Kelly, the tape sits in the WWE Archive in Stanford, CT with instructions "never to destroy, view or duplicate". Footage from the 1999 match where Darren "Droz" Drozdov got paralyzed accidentally is apparently in the archive with the same instructions.
The remainder of the event was only available online in the form of bootleg VHS recordings made during the event until the launch of the WWE Network in February 2014[2], Where the PPV is available on the service although edited to not include the aftermath of the fall and the announcement of Hart's death by Jim Ross.
References
- ↑ 2013 column on Owen Hart, written by former WWF announcer Kevin Kelly on the 14th anniversary of Hart's death. Retrieved 23 May '13.
- ↑ http://www.wwe.com/inside/every-pay-per-view-on-wwe-network-26179147 Retrieved 4 February. '14