THE woman who fell to her death from the Wyvern Theatre car park has been named locally as Melissa Castle.

Sources told the Swindon Advertiser that the 28-year-old had been homeless for many years.

Her final moments this morning were watched helplessly by staff at the Wyvern Theatre and council workers in a nearby building.

Melissa had been a client of local homelessness charity Threshold Housing Link, and chief executive Cher Sawyer said: “It was with great sadness that we learnt of Melissa’s death.

“We were working positively with her and she was making good progress. Our condolences go to her family and friends.”

The tragedy began to unfold late in the morning. At about 11.15am the police received a report of a person on the roof level of the Wyvern Theatre car park.

Officers went to the scene along with an ambulance crew and a paramedic, but Ms Castle was pronounced dead at about 11.30am.

The Wiltshire Air Ambulance had also been called but was stood down on route.

The Princes Street car park opposite the Magistrates Court was cordoned off with police incident tape while officers investigated and the scene was cleared.

Three police cars were manoeuvred into a cordon around a section of pavement in front of the multi-storey car park, near a lamppost.

Car park attendants were positioned at entrances, allowing drivers to exit the car park, but not allowing anybody to enter.

Forensic services were also at the scene as well as a mobile CCTV van.

Police officers and at least one PCSO guarded the area, kept the busy lunchtime traffic moving and helped motorists leaving the car park to negotiate the cordon.

A Wiltshire Police spokesman said: “We are investigating to establish the circumstances surrounding this death.”

A spokesman for South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust said: “We received a call from police at 11.31am reporting the incident. We were told it was a female in her late 20s.

“A paramedic and rapid response vehicle were both sent to the scene and we also had the air ambulance out.

“However, within two minutes of being on the scene paramedics said the patient was beyond help and the air ambulance was stood down and the incident was handed over to the police.”

Melissa’s death is the latest in a string of suicides and attempted suicides at town centre multi-storey car parks.

Last June, 75-year-old David Hackman wrote his will just four days before falling from the fourth floor of the Fleming Way car park.

Described by his friends as an old fashioned gentleman, the retired machine operator left his £81,000 net estate to a cousin.

An inquest heard that he’d told street outreach workers of money troubles.

The Samaritans are available to help anybody in distress and can be reached at any time on 08457 90 90 90 or by email at jo@samaritans.org.