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A man who fell to his death from scaffolding in south London was a free-running enthusiast who had travelled across Europe practising parkour.

Johnny Turner, 28, died after plunging from the eighth storey of a block of flats in Waterloo on Thursday night.

Tributes were today paid to Mr Turner, an accomplished parkour runner from Wandsworth who had scaled a host of high-rise buildings in London.

Friends described him as a pioneer of London’s urban exploring community, with pictures online showing him scaling buildings such as the Barbican and Battersea Power Station.

James Wood, a fellow parkour enthusiast, said: “Johnny was the most thoughtful, inspiring, gentle, enthusiastic, positive person I have ever met. He was the beating heart of the free-running and urban exploration community in London.

“There was never anything negative he had to say about anyone or anything, he relished living in the moment and insisted he had his friends by his side.”

Mr Turner’s uncle, Ralph Phillips, said: “He was a great boy, really nice to be around. His mum and dad knew what he did and obviously worried about it as any parent would.

“His parents have been to see us after what happened. For a parent to have a child die before them is something hard to comprehend. They are devastated. He was a talented artist and caring person with lots of friends.”

Mr Phillips said Mr Turner’s parents, who were away in Germany when the accident happened, want a thorough investigation to take place.

More than 40 fellow free runners met at Windmill House, where Mr Turner died, yesterday to pay their respects.

A GoFundMe page set up in his memory has raised more than £3,500. The page said he had the “kindest and pure soul”.