Why tragic death of tall building climber would not deter me

Anonymous: I can picture myself sitting on the narrow ledge that separated me from death, my legs dangling over the edge, staring 30 storeys down at the tiny cars and little people going about their business. Would I do it again? Absolutely

I was 100 meters high, it was just me and my friends – and the view was all for us (Supplied by author)

In the summer of 2020, I experienced for the first time what it’s like to look out from the roof of a building.

I was 17 and I remember being completely awestruck. I had a 360-degree view of London, my home. I was 100 meters high, it was just me and my friends – and the view was all for us. I couldn’t stop thinking about how lucky I was; that I was there, experiencing this beautiful city in a whole new light, in a way that most people will never get to.

It was fascinating seeing the Shard, which still looked so massive – even from that height. I can picture myself sitting on the narrow ledge that separated me from death, my legs dangling over the edge, staring 30 storeys down at the tiny cars and little people going about their day to day business, now seeming so insignificant.

It was that feeling that led me to delve deeper into the “Urbex” (Urban Exploration) lifestyle – and it got all the more exciting as the months went by. It wasn’t only the rooftops of apartment buildings that we wanted to reach, but abandoned buildings too, which became one of my favourite ways to explore.

Millennium Mills is an incredible place, located in London’s Docklands. The building itself is massive and filled with rusted machinery falling apart, but with the manuals still intact.

One of the most terrifying things I remember from this place was where the floor had completely given way, and some of the boys were jumping from beam to beam, purely to experience the thrill of having a two-storey drop below them (Supplied by author)

There was nothing stopping us from entering each room other than the floors that were either caving in or had been completely destroyed by fire damage. We had to climb up staircases that had lost most of their wood, stepping on the metal bolts that once held them in place in order to get to the next floor up.

One of the most terrifying things I remember from this place was where the floor had completely given way, and some of the boys were jumping from beam to beam, purely to experience the thrill of having a two-storey drop below them.

People tend to jump to the conclusion that urban exploration is illegal, however, civil trespass is not a crime as long as nothing is broken. For this reason, we were able to see and do as much as we liked in these remarkable buildings without the worry of criminal proceedings.

Another one of my favourite places was an abandoned hospital that had all sorts of intriguing medical equipment, including large machinery used for analysing patients as well as blood samples and other medical waste that hadn’t been disposed of.

But my favourite building that I’ve reached the top of is located in Canary Wharf, near One Canada Square and the HSBC tower. It’s 182 meters tall, and has the most beautiful city view of any I’ve seen over the past three years. There was no barrier to stop us falling to our deaths. Standing on the edge of it felt exhilarating.

There was no barrier to stop us falling to our deaths. Standing on the edge of it felt exhilarating (Supplied by author)

The adrenaline rush that you experience up there is unmatched, and I think it’s something that everyone should get to feel, even just once.

But it isn’t without risk. One time, we were on a roof and a boy that I knew decided he would climb the crane that was directly opposite us. It began pouring with rain, meaning that the structure was becoming incredibly slippery. I couldn’t stop thinking about him climbing in the rain, tied in with the fact that cranes can be very oily. It worried me greatly. I couldn’t stop thinking of him potentially falling from that height.

Luckily, everything was fine, but it put things perspective for me and I started to question how we were spending every day risking our lives, just for the thrill of it, when we have so much life yet to live.

I don’t condemn urban exploration at all and I think its an incredible way to test your limits – but the fear of that moment made me realise I had to slow down.

As we can see now from what has happened to Remi Lucidi, the fun can end very quickly as soon as a wrong step is taken.