ORLANDO, Fla., Aug. 11 (UPI) -- A performer at Walt Disney World in Florida has died after being hospitalized for injuries he received onstage at the Magic Kingdom, officials said.
A park spokeswoman said Mark Priest fell last week while performing in "Captain Jack Sparrow's Pirate Tutorial," an interactive show where actors take guests through pirate-skills tests, the Orlando Sentinel reported Tuesday. Priest died Monday at Florida Hospital Celebration Health-Orlando. An official cause of death has not been determined.
Priest, who was in a mock sword fight, stumbled on a wet spot on the stage and then banged into a wall Thursday, said friend Jeffrey Breslauer. He sustained a broken vertebra in his neck and a cut that required 55 stitches to his scalp.
"It was a very freakish thing," said Breslauer, who told the newspaper he has known Priest for 18 years.
After being alerted of Priest's death, park officials contacted the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Orange County Sheriff's Office, the newspaper said.
"Our hearts go out to his family and fellow cast members, and we are offering our support to them during this difficult time," Disney spokeswoman Kim Prunty said.
