One Direction's Liam Payne dies in Argentina after horror fall from hotel balcony

Former One Direction star Liam Payne has lost his life at the age of 31 having tragically fallen from a hotel balcony in the Palermo area of Buenos Aires, Argentina

Charles Wade-Palmer Chief News Reporter and Liam McInerney Content Editor

22:44, 16 Oct 2024Updated 07:30, 17 Oct 2024

Former One Direction star Liam Payne dies aged 31

Liam Payne has died at the age of 31. Tributes from fans and A-Lister pals have since flooded in.

The former One Direction star had been in Buenos Aires before he fell from an upper floor of a hotel.

He had been holidaying in Argentina. Liam was one of the most famous popstars in the world after appearing on The X Factor when he was placed in a band with Louis Tomlinson, Harry Styles, Zayn Malik and Niall Horan.

Liam reportedly fell from one of the floors of a hotel before police, firefighters and ambulances rushed to the scene. Young women at the scene expressed shock and heartbreak. "I didn't think he was going to die so young," 21-year-old Isabella Milesi told The Associated Press.

[Liam Payne]

The last Snapchat story of Liam Payne in Argentina (Image: @ShamaJunejo)

The singer was staying at Hotel Cas Sur in Palermo and a local ambulance manager told TNZ: "At 17.04 through the 911 integrated public safety system, we were alerted of a person who was in an internal courtyard of the management of a south house hotel. At 17.11 a same team arrived and verified the death of this man and later we found out that he was a singer in a musical group. Unfortunately, he had injuries that were incompatible with life, as a result of his fall, so we had to confirm his death, there was no possibility of resuscitation."

[Fans of British singer Liam Payne lit candles next to the hotel where he died in Buenos Aires]

Fans of the British singerlit candles next to the hotel where he died in Buenos Aires(Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Police were reportedly called to check on an "an aggressive man who could be under the influence of drugs or alcohol".

Witnesses told TMZ the tragedy unfolded just after 5pm local time. They added that the singer was seen "behaving erratically" in the lobby earlier in the day.

He reportedly smashed his laptop in the lobby before having to be carried back to his hotel room.

[One Direction ]

He rose to fame after appearing in the boyband One Direction (Image: Getty Images North America)

Police in Argentina said Liam's fall resulted in "extremely serious injuries" and Alberto Crescenti, the head of the state emergency medical system, told the press that the singer fell into a courtyard.

Crescenti said in a statement: "At 17.04 through the 911 integrated public safety system, we were alerted of a person who was in an internal courtyard of the management of a south house hotel.

[The dad-of-one was forced to cancel a series of gigs to recover]

The dad-of-one previously spoke about suffering some "very dark years" (Image: Instagram)

"At 17.11 a SAME team arrived and verified the death of this man and later we found out that he was a singer in a musical group. Unfortunately, he had injuries that were incompatible with life, as a result of his fall, so we had to confirm his death, there was no possibility of resuscitation."

As news spread of his death, Liam's fans in the area rushed to his hotel to pay tribute to the star. They were met by the scene of a police cordon with forensic investigators in white protective suits and blue gloves coming and going.

[Liam with girlfriend Kate Cassidy]

Liam with girlfriend Kate Cassidy

Liam enjoyed huge success as part of One Direction - but he previously admitted to struggling with drink and drugs, acknowledging that his lifestyle became a "cause for concern" at one point in time.

The 'Strip That Down' hitmaker - who starred in the band alongside Niall, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik - told the BBC: "When I was younger, I went straight in on the whisky. I tend to pick my poison early, then I stick with it until it bores me."

Liam confessed to suffering some "very dark years", despite his fame and success.

Content cannot be displayed without consent

The singer - who had a son called Bear with his ex-partner, pop star Cheryl - shared: "There were a couple of very dark years of me going through extreme peril with different mental health things."

Article continues below

[Cheryl (L) and Liam Payne attend The BRIT Awards 2018]

Cheryl (L) and Liam Payne attend The BRIT Awards 2018(Image: Dave J Hogan/Getty Images)

Fellow X Factor alumni Olly Murs, shared a photo with Liam following the news. He captioned the snap: "This news is devastating, am lost for words we always had a good laugh when we saw each other, sometimes the catch ups were only short and sweet but when we did it was mostly about how annoyingly good his hair always looked, or our love for Becks, the old XF days and the tour we shared together.

"Liam shared the same passions as me, the same dreams so to see his life now end so young hits hard, Im truly gutted and devastated for his Family and of course his son Bear losing a dad x am thinking of them! RIP Liam."

[Dailystar Icon]

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Choose Daily Star as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.

[Google Preferred Source Badge]

At Reach and across our entities we and our partners use information collected through cookies and other identifiers from your device to improve experience on our site, analyse how it is used and to show personalised advertising. You can opt out of the sale or sharing of your data, at any time clicking the "Do Not Sell or Share my Data" button at the bottom of the webpage. Please note that your preferences are browser specific. Use of our website and any of our services represents your acceptance of the use of cookies and consent to the practices described in our Privacy Notice and Terms and Conditions.