Man found dead inside AZ waterslide

On Aug. 17, 2020, 31-year-old Ryan Kelly was found dead inside of a pipe in an aquatic center in Scottsdale, Arizona.

According to Scottsdale police, Kelly, who was homeless, climbed the fence to the Eldorado Aquatic and Fitness Center and used the pool.

After swimming, he crawled into a large steel tube that served as part of the support structure for a water slide. He then became trapped.

In an interview with The Arizona Republic, police spokesman Sgt. Kevin Watts stated an officer reported hearing calls for help at around 12:30 a.m. from a quarter mile away from the aquatic center.

The pipe functioned as a megaphone, amplifying the sound so the officer could hear him from so far away.

'This made it difficult at first to pinpoint his location,' Sgt. Brian Reynolds told NBC News.

Officers began searching the area for the location of the cries for help and discovered Kelly after about an hour. Sgt. Watts said it was difficult to find Kelly because the the pipe was contained within the structure.

'It took some work to get down in there, which obviously would not be the first place that people would be looking to find someone,' said Watts.

Emergency officials then began communicating with Kelly and dismantling the water slide in order to free him, but he stopped responding as they did so. Kelly was pronounced dead at around 2:18 a.m. Officials removed the body from the pipe at 7 a.m.

The cause of death is still waiting to be determined by the Maricopa County Office of the Medical Examiner. Emily Erickson, a childhood friend of Kelly, raised $3,000 on GoFundME for the family to cover expenses.

“Ryan left this world but will never leave our hearts. He was sweet, kind and full of life,” said Erickson on her GoFundMe page.

Eldorado Aquatic and Fitness Center, Scottsdale, Arizona, Photo Credit Insider.com