The father of a 19-year-old woman is sharing his grief after his daughter died earlier this month in a fall from an unused college building that had appeared in Netflix’s Stranger Things.
Leah Palmirotto is believed to have been exploring the vacant structure on Emory University’s Briarcliff campus with a group of people when she fell to her death, according to local news reports. She was pronounced dead at the scene on Friday, Dec. 19.
The building had been used as the Hawkins National Laboratory in Stranger Things and was also previously featured in The Vampire Diaries.
In an interview this week, Leah’s father, Todd Palmirotto Jr., described the moment police arrived at his home to deliver the news, according to local outlet WAGA.
“She was perfect,” Todd said, adding, “I was blown away. I just wasn’t sure.”
He said he believes this may not have been the first time his daughter visited the property where she died. Authorities are still investigating what led to Leah’s fall.
“We just kind of always had something in the back of our mind that something could happen,” he explained.
Still, Todd said his focus now is on whether his daughter suffered. “I’m just hoping it [the fall] was instant. I just hope she felt no pain,” he said.
Todd also warned that visiting properties like the one where Leah died can be “dangerous,” and suggested she may have been with people she “really don’t know.”
As of midday on Tuesday, Dec. 23, more than $2,500 had been raised through a GoFundMe campaign launched to support Leah’s family.
Tom Cavanaugh, a family friend who organized the online fundraiser, said donations will go toward Leah’s funeral and memorial expenses.
According to Cavanaugh, Leah had an affinity for photography and “loved exploring and photographing abandoned buildings.”
“She was a beautiful and vibrant young lady originally from Florida who lived for the beach and outdoors,” Cavanaugh wrote. “She was always the popular kid in school and got along with everybody. Her family is left absolutely heartbroken.”
Leah is survived by her father, her mother, and two brothers, Cavanaugh said.
An informal memorial will take place at a Kennesaw park on Tuesday, according to WAGA.
