‘Please do not climb them and venture toward the cliff edge, especially at night’: Police warn after death

POLICE are warning people to stop climbing over a cliff side fence along the Darwin Esplanade after a man fell from a platform and died

Police are investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a 29-year-old man who fell from a cliff near the Darwin Esplanade on Monday. Picture Katrina Bridgeford.

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POLICE are warning people to stop climbing over a cliff side fence along the Darwin Esplanade after a 29-year-old man fell from a platform and died on Monday.

Emergency services taped off parts of Bicentennial Park, opposite from Peel St, after receiving reports a man had fallen from a cliff at about 4am on Monday.

His body was recovered, but paramedics from St John Ambulance declared the man deceased at the scene.

Police were using 3D imaging at the scene on Monday afternoon as they investigated the circumstances of the death. Superintendent Daniel Shean said the incident did not appear to be suspicious.

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“It is a timely reminder to everyone who visits the Esplanade that the safety fences are there for a reason,” he said.

“Please do not climb them and venture toward the cliff edge, especially at night where there is little to no light to assist in seeing where the edge is.”

The area taped off by police also included a gate along the fence held shut with cable ties.

Darwin council’s general manager of government relations, Melissa Reiter, said council would await the findings of the police investigation to ensure any safety measures it takes are appropriate.

Police are investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a 29-year-old man who fell from a cliff near the Darwin Esplanade on Monday. Picture Katrina Bridgeford.

She said there were some access points along the fence connecting the park to the lower Lameroo Beach area and Deck Chair Cinema along the Esplanade.

Lord Mayor Kon Vatskalis said while the death was very unfortunate council had already put up a fence at the cliff side to stop people from getting too close.

“There’s not much more we can do about it if people are going to ignore the fence,” he said.

“We’re not going to put a four-metre barbed wire fence.

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“We’ve already complied with everything to stop people getting too close.

“The cliff is quite steep and slippery in some parts.

“People who go past the fence can lose their balance and slip down.”

It comes after a similar incident in August when a woman was rushed to Royal Darwin Hospital with possible spinal damage after falling from a cliff at the Darwin Esplanade.

A group of NT Police, SES members and St John Ambulance crews at the scene were able to rescue the woman.