The 62-year-old multi-millionaire was using the Segway to inspect the grounds of his property. He was found in the river at about 11.40 AM by a passer-by. Police and Fire Service officers were called to the scene to investigate, but reports state he was already dead. The accident details are yet unknown.
“Police were called at 11.40am yesterday to reports of a man in the River Wharfe, apparently having fallen from the cliffs above on a Segway,” said a spokesman for West Yorkshire Police for Capital Bay. “He was pronounced dead at the scene.”
The incident comes a week after Heselden has donated GBP10 million to a charity foundation he set up in 2008.
"It was a real privilege to have got to know Jimi over the past few months. He was the kind of person that people call salt of the earth. He did not have any airs and graces and was not giving the money to gain publicity or to boast about his success, but just because he wanted to make a difference," said Chief executive at Leeds Community Foundation, Sally-Anne Greenfield.
The Segway uses gyroscopes to remain upright and is controlled by the direction in which the rider leans. The Segway can be stopped entirely once the rider restores the balance personally, meaning that leaning back would basically slow down the device. The two-wheeled machine has a maximum speed of 12.5 mph (20 km/h) and a range of up to 24 miles (38 km).
Google News