A man taking part in the Echternach hopping procession on Tuesday has hopped too high, breaking a hole in the ground and disappearing into it, say dozens of stunned witnesses.

Tessy Eberhardt, 53, a fellow hopper who was also taking part in the annual Sprangpressessioun, says everyone was hopping along just fine when the unexpected occurred.

"There were nine of us in a line, happily hopping and hoping for the rain to halt, when a hopper in front of us started hopping higher and higher," she said. "In fact, in all of my years of hopping, I'd never seen anyone hop that high."

Within minutes, she says, the unidentified hopper was hopping to heights of five or six meters.

"We begged him to stop, but he had obviously gone what experienced hoppers call 'hopping mad,' which is when the adrenaline and excitement takes over and you can’t control yourself," she said.

"Then all at once, he landed with a boom, broke through the ground, and disappeared," she added. "We called down and asked if he was okay, but all we could hear was that wherever he was, he was still hopping."

Officials who monitor the procession and are tasked with preventing overzealous hoppers from losing control say there was nothing anyone could do.

"It may have been pure enthusiasm or the strong espresso he had consumed in the morning," said Ricardo Santos. "When you reach that state, it's dangerous for other people to intervene."

"Back in 2001, I saw a woman hop to the second story of an apartment building," he continued. "Her husband tried to grab her, but she just continued hopping even with him holding on to her legs."

"They're still in couples therapy," he added.

Yvette Schmidt, who claims to be an ex-girlfriend of the hopper who disappeared into the crust of the Earth, says that she knew this day would come.

"He is a fanatical hopper, just as his father was before him, and his grandfather before that," she said. "That's all he ever thought about or wanted to do: hopping, hopping, all the time."

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