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Liam Payne's Grieving Father Arrives In Argentina; Joins Fans Mourning 1D Star Outside Hotel Where He Died
On Friday, just two days after his son's tragic passing, Liam Payne's father joined mourning fans outside the hotel in Argentina, acknowledging the heartfelt tributes left for the One Direction star.
Trigger Warning: This article mentions an individual's death.
Liam Payne’s father, Geoff, 66, arrived in Argentina on October 18 to confirm the identity of his son, who passed away after falling from the balcony of his hotel room on October 16.
The mourning father is currently in the South American country where the One Direction star spent his final days, overseeing the arrangements for repatriating his son's body to the UK, their home country. During his visit, Payne’s father, according to Sky News, visited the CasaSur Hotel in Buenos Aires, Payne’s last location before his tragic passing. Heartbreaking images and videos of him touring the premises have emerged.
Geoff Payne appeared stoic as he spent eight minutes walking around a tree outside the hotel which has been transformed into a makeshift memorial by the late musician's fans. Following Payne’s demise, Directioners have pinned pictures of the beloved singer and left tribute notes on the site.
Geoff, as reported by Sky News correspondent Martha Kelner, removed his glasses at one point to read notes written in English and picked up his son's pictures to kiss them. He also took a moment to thank the crowd that has been gathering outside the hotel where Payne breathed his last, celebrating his life and legacy by holding candlelit vigils and singing his songs, which now hold a different meaning and are bound to become timeless.
At the hotel, Geoff wasn’t allowed into the exact room Payne stayed in, which is still an active investigation scene. He was, however, shown a room with a similar layout.
On Thursday, Payne’s family released a statement to the BBC expressing their heartbreak over their son's passing, saying, “Liam will forever live” in their hearts and that he’ll be remembered by his loved ones for “his kind, funny, and brave soul.” They emphasized: “We are supporting each other the best we can as a family and ask for privacy and space at this awful time.”
In 2013, when One Direction: This Is Us, a concert documentary, was released, the singer’s father, a mechanic, and his mother, a nurse, both made cameos. His mother remarked that while seeing her son perform onstage fills her with pride, she and Liam’s father miss spending time with him amid his demanding work schedule.
Tributes for Payne include joint and individual statements from his bandmates Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik, and Niall Horan, as well as a tribute from Simon Cowell, who put the band together in 2010. While his surviving bandmates remembered him as a brother whom they lost too soon, Cowell noted in his statement that he feels empty and truly devastated amid the tragedy that has sent shockwaves through the music world.
Payne, who died at the young age of 31, is survived by his parents and his son, Bear, 7.
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