Chinese Daredevil Falls to Death From Skyscraper in Failed Stunt

Wu Yongning lost his life on 8 November but the news of his death was declared a month later by his girlfriend.

Profile picture of Wu Yongning.

(Photo: Instagram/ @wuyongning)

A 26-year-old Chinese stuntman plunged to death performing his trademark daredevil stunt from a high-rise 62-storeyed skyscraper in Changsha, the Newsweek reported. While the stuntman died on 8 November, the video was posted a month later by his girlfriend.

Wu Yongning lost his grip while recording a stunt at the Huayuan International Centre in Changsha, one of the tallest buildings in China. He was participating in a $15,000 rooftopping challenge in November, the time of his death.

According to South China Morning Post, Yongning took to ‘rooftopping’ to support his family after a short stint as a paid background actor in Chinese films.

Josie Griffiths of The Sun describes rooftopping as a “death-defying craze which sees young adults dangling off the edge of buildings – in the quest of social media fame.”

As per reports, a window cleaner came across his body and reported it to authorities. The incident was captured by a camera placed on another side of the building.

Yongning’s girlfriend. Jin Jin, shared the video in a social media post on 8 December, the Daily Mail reported.

Jin Jin wrote online: “Today is December 8th. It makes me think of November 8th, the day you left us and left this world.”

She told the Beijing News that he was planning to ask her parents' permission to marry her after filming the stunt. He was supposed to gift his family presents from the money he sought to earn through the video.

“He planned to propose to his girlfriend (the day after the challenge). He needed the money for the wedding, and for medical treatment for his ailing mother,” his step-uncle told South China Morning Post.

Yongning had amassed huge fan following for the 300 videos he had uploaded on ‘Volcano, ’a live-streaming site. He used to receive virtual currency from his fans for his videos and earned around 55,000 yuan (Rs 5.3 lakh) from 217 live-streaming sessions, according to the Daily Mail.

Yongning was a regular face in advertisements on social media and live-streaming platforms. According to the Daily Mail, the fearless climber did not use any safety equipment , taking his ‘martial arts training’ into consideration.

He filmed himself doing a one-arm handstand on top of the 70-storeyed Sun Moon Light Plaza in Chongqing on on 3 October. He was seen walking on a tiny ledge on top of the 68-storey Yuexiu Fortune Center in Wuhan in another video.

Yongning captured his escapades using a selfie-stick. Till date, he had received close to 60,000 likes and comments for his videos.

Condolences Come In

The news of his death triggered a slew of responses from people across the world.

(With inputs from Newsweek, Washington Post, ScoopWhoop , BBC, Daily Mail, South China Morning Post)