A U.S. student on spring break fell more than six meters to his death last week just hours after arriving at his hotel in Los Cabos, Baja California Sur.

Aiden Nevarez, 18, a freshman student majoring in financial planning at Arizona State University (ASU), was staying with classmates at the five-star Hotel Riu Santa Fe, just outside Cabo San Lucas.

Nevarez’s friends said he scaled a low wall inside the hotel complex and fell more than six meters. They said foliage from palm trees below the wall resembled short bushes, disguising the height of the drop.

His body was found in the hotel’s storm drain canal and the forensic report concluded that he died by obstruction to his airways, which is commonly caused by alcohol related congestion, the news site Tribuna de la Paz reported.

Nevarez’s mother Sayra said the tragedy had been impossible to come to terms with. “You can’t breathe, you can’t process anything, you don’t feel like anything is real … Everything stops. your life stops right there,” she said.

Both of Nevarez’s parents agreed the hotel should improve safety, whether through better signage or by building a higher wall. “This can’t happen to anyone else. It’s completely senseless,” Sayra added.

Nevarez’s roommate Jack Fitzgerald said his friend was well liked and that the accident was unexpected. “Never in a million years did anyone who knew us or knew Aiden expect us to be sitting here right now … He was the most genuine kid that I knew. The biggest smile. He was so loved. Everybody loved Aiden,” he said.

“The day before we went to Cabo, he pulled me aside and … he said, ‘Jack we have the best lives ever. I cannot imagine my life a different way,'” Fitzgerald added.

“It just really shows to be appreciative. Nothing is promised,” another friend, Jake Reithinger, said.

Hotel Riu Santa Fe declined to comment when contacted, the news site 12 News reported.

Friends of the Nevarez family have set up a GoFundMe page to assist them with the unanticipated costs. The page had raised over US $100,000 as of Monday afternoon.

With reports from 12 News, AZ Central and Tribuna de la Paz