WARNING: DISTRESSING CONTENT An engaged couple who wanted to complete a bungee jump together ended up falling 330ft to their deaths.

Tandem bungee jump in Prohodna Cave. Bungee jump for two. Young couple hugging hanging on

The couple jumped off a bridge, unaware they would be falling to their deaths (stock image) (Image: Didi_Lavchieva via Getty Images)

An engaged couple fell more than 300ft to their deaths in what should have been a thrilling tandem bungee jumping experience, but instead turned into a nightmare.

Bungee jumping is an extreme sport adored by countless adrenaline junkies, and sees a person leap headfirst from an elevated structure such as a bridge, towering building, cliff, crane and more, while secured to a robust, elastic cord.

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It provides the participant with the sensation of free-falling, before the elastic cord extends and cushions the impact of the descent, bouncing and propelling the jumper skywards until the momentum of the fall dissipates. Usually, jumpers are then brought down to ground level or another recovery platform.

However, for Italian couple Alberto Galletti and Tiziana Accora, their bungee jump would culminate in a fatal catastrophe.

It was May 1, 2002, and the pair travelled to the Ponte Canale bridge at the Polino Bungee Jumping Centre near Terni, in central Italy, approximately 60 miles north of Rome.

In a heartbreaking turn of events, the centre was preparing to shut early for the May Day bank holiday when the couple contacted manager Lorenzo Illuminati and begged him to remain open slightly longer so they could jump together.

Alberto, who was a 25-year-old paratrooper at the time, and Tiziana Accora, then a 26-year-old student, jumped together from the towering bridge, but instead of bouncing back up on the cord, they plummeted 330 feet to their deaths below.

Tragically, the snap-hooks fastening their cord to the bridge failed, resulting in them falling to the canyon floor.

As was customary, their deaths were filmed on video. The bungee jumping facility routinely recorded customers' jumps so they could keep them as mementos and forever remember their experience.

At the time, Lorenzo Illuminati told state television: "I had actually closed when they called. They begged me to stay open so I waited for them. They jumped off together in each other's arms and then this happened. It's terrible.

Two gold wedding bands on white sand.

The couple were engaged at the time of their deaths (stock image) (Image: Getty Images)

"Just an hour earlier another couple jumped safely using the same elastic band and clips."

Their deaths were reportedly the first fatalities to have occurred at the location.

Terni police spokesman, Lt Rovaldi Di Marco, said at the time: "At the moment the investigation is focusing on the safety harness that was being worn by the couple and the clips that secure it to the bridge.

"The cord was found intact and before the couple a man of 90kg jumped off the bridge."

Di Marco added: "I understand that Alberto was a serving paratrooper with a regiment based in Siena and so had done this before but we think it was Tiziana's first time at bungee jumping.

View of high ropes course, process of climbing in amusement acitivity rope park, passing obstacles and zip line on heights in cl

The couple wanted to complete a tandem bungee jump but it led to their deaths (stock image) (Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)

"The elastic cord did not break but we think the safety harness it was attached to came out of the bridge."

The policeman was questioned whether the cord possessed sufficient strength to support two people jumping together.

He replied: "From what I know, it should have been able to cope with a combined weight of 2,000kg so, in theory, it should have been okay.

"However, that is one aspect we will be looking at as well as the safety clips that are harnessed into the structure of the bridge or maybe it was a human error - it is still too early to say."

The location was shut down while officers carried out a thorough investigation into the deaths of the couple.