‘I’m the last person Liam Payne sang to’: Heartbroken fan describes meeting her idol just hours before his tragic fall
A ONE Direction fan claims to be one of the last people to see Liam Payne alive before his tragic hotel balcony fall.
The singer died after suffering multiple injuries following a plunge from a balcony at the Casa Sur hotel in Buenos Aires.
Emergency services rushed to the scene but the 31-year-old was pronounced dead.
A woman shared an emotional video on TikTok claiming she was one of the last people to see him alive.
The TikToker named Carola Gauna, appears in tears before a photo of her with Liam shows up.
She writes in the caption: “I was one of the last people to speak with Liam Payne.
“(I took this photo hours before his death).
“I’m making this video with a broken heart, I can’t believe it “
” He smiled at me and sang. I got goosebumps .”
The Tiktoker continued by saying the ex-One Direction star appeared intoxicated.
“I thought he was kind of joking; I’m one of the last people he talked to. The ones he sang to.
- Liam’s cause of death was released by medics
- A heartbreaking 911 call from worried hotel staff was revealed
- Cops are reportedly set to hunt for a drug dealer
- The star’s ex says she “predicted his early death”
- Liam’s girlfriend revealed why she left Argentina
- Simon Cowell cancelled BGT auditions after Liam’s death
” I went from having the happiest day of my life to one of the saddest .”
“Understand that I still have his perfume on me. It seems crazy to me.
“I know he was famous and that he didn’t even care about me, but today I had a nice moment with him. How unfair!”
Crowds of fans gathered outside the hotel to pay their respects as news of the singer’s death spread.
They held candlelit vigils with many leaving flowers and hand-written messages fixed to a tree.
Emergency services said Liam died instantly from multiple injuries including a fractured skull.
Chief Alberto Crescenti said: “The alarm was raised at 5.04pm local time saying a person was lying in an internal patio at Casa Sur.
“Our role was to head there quickly, give medical attention, and try to resuscitate him, but his injuries were incompatible with life.
“Based on what the team saw, there was apparently a cranial fracture and extremely serious injuries that led to his immediate death.”
Cops said they were called to the hotel on Wednesday after staff reported an “aggressive man who could be under the influence of drugs or alcohol”.
The head of reception made two calls, telling a 911 operator in the first: “We have a guest who is destroying everything in his room. We need someone to come.”
He phoned back after the line went dead, repeating his request and claiming: “We need you to send someone urgently because I don’t know if the guest’s life is in danger.
Hotel manager's call to 911
911 operator: “What is happening sir?”
Hotel manager: “We have a guest drunk with drugs and alcohol. When he [them, gender not clear in conversation] is conscious, he is breaking everything in the room.”
911 operator: “You said alcohol and drugs…”
Hotel manager: “This is correct.”
911 operator: “You said Costa Rica intersecting where?”
Hotel manager: “Costa Rica 6032.”
911 operator: “Repeat.”
Hotel manager: “Costa Rica 6032.”
911 operator: “What is the hotel called?”
Hotel manager: “Caza Azul Palermo. We need to send someone with urgency because I don’t know if the guest’s life is in danger because he is in a room with balcony, and we are afraid he could do something that threatens life.”
911 operator: “How long has he been there? Is it a long-stay hotel?”
Hotel manager: “(The guest) has been for the past three days.”
911 operator: “You don’t any other information because you can’t get in. Right?”
Hotel manager: “No.”
911 operator: “We are also notifying SAME (Medical Emergency Attention Service).”
Hotel manager: “We are asking to send someone with urgency because…”
911 operator: “We are doing that. Any other data to give me. Who are you?”
Hotel manager: “I’m the desk manager.”
911 operator: “Person in charge of the place.”
Hotel manager – “Yes.”
911 operator: “It has been notified. What is your name, sir?”
Hotel manager: “Esteban.”
911 operator: “Thanks for calling. Be online.”
Hotel manager: “Are you sending police too.”
911 operator: “Police from the delegation… Let me confirm.”
Hotel manager: “No, no, only SAME, only SAME (Medical Emergency Attention Service).”
911 operator: “Don’t worry because they have already been notified.”
Hotel manager: “Because as you said he is under the influence of alcohol and drugs, SAME personnel can’t enter alone.”
911 operator: “You can ask that to the police, but if SAME needs them, they will notify you.”
Hotel manager: “Good, OK, perfect.”
911 operator: “Have a good day.”
Hotel manager: “Thanks, you too.”
“They must be in a room that has a balcony. And well, we’re a little bit worried he’ll do something, that he’ll put his life at risk.”
Witnesses said the former One Direction star was “behaving erratically” and was even carried back to his hotel room before his death.
A haunting photo – purportedly his last one- shows the singer going back to the Hotel CasaSur.
Cops found Liam dead in the hotel’s inner courtyard at around 5pm local time (9pm UK time) when they arrived.
A post-mortem is expected to be carried out later today in Buenos Aires.
The singer was in Buenos Aires for pal and former One Direction bandmate Niall Horan’s tour.
Liam had shared a post on Snapchat only minutes before his death showing himself with his girlfriend Kate Cassidy looking into a mirror.
Tributes have poured in for the singer with celebrities and fans alike sharing their heartbreak.
Harry Styles’ mum shared a heartbreaking tribute on Instagram writing in the caption: “Just a boy…”.
Comment: Howell Davies on Liam Payne
by Howell Davies, Associate Bizarre Editor
LIAM was warm, a little bit goofy and the dad – figuratively, not literally – in One Direction, who always kept everyone in check and gave the people what they wanted.
He was the spokesperson of the group, speaking up while the others fooled around or shrunk into the background.
I interviewed him lots of times over the years, first of all back in December 2014 when I was a fledgling reporter and he was still one fifth of the world’s most famous boyband.
On that night at the BBC Music Awards in West London, they squeezed onto a sofa and Liam spoke animatedly while his bandmate Zayn Malik barely said a word.
He was friendly and the most professional of the group because he knew his role was to hold things together.
You could tell he was eager to please, even then.
But I would hear whispers from behind the scenes that all was not well.
He was abusing alcohol and his love life was a rollercoaster.
Things came to a head in the final year of One Direction and those working around him made it clear that it was a relief he would finally have some time off to be a normal guy in his early twenties – after years spent pin-balling across the glove in a haze of screams from fans.
It was shocking to me that at 22 he had been in the industry for years and years, while I, just a year older, was only just starting my career.
I still felt like a kid, but he was one of the most talked-about people in the world.
And Liam’s ex-fiancée Maya Henry was ” in shock” in the wake of the tragic news.
Just two days before Liam’s tragic fall, Maya made comments on a podcast claiming the star “predicted his early death.”
Liam had posted earlier in the day talking about riding horses, playing polo, and looking forward to returning home to see his dog.
He wrote: “It’s a lovely day here in Argentina.”
Kate had also shared a post of Liam just before his death riding a horse with her in the countryside.
The star had arrived in Argentina on September 30 with his girlfriend and was seen at Niall’s show dancing and meeting fans on October 2.
Footage shows Liam at Niall’s concert just days before he died.
He is survived by his son Bear, 7, his parents, Geoff and Karen Payne, and his two older sisters, Ruth and Nicola.
Back in August, the 31-year-old singer shared a rare insight into his private life posting a video of his son Bear saying he was his “mini-me.”