A man dressed up as Santa Claus collapsed and died in a Russian school on Tuesday.
A 67-year-old Russian man named Valery Titenko suffered a heart attack while performing his role as Father Christmas in front of kindergarteners. According to reports, Titenko was feeling chest pains earlier in the day and had recently been in poor health. However, the professional actor did not want to let the kids down by canceling. (RELATED: Some People Have Some Strange Ideas For ‘Modernizing’ Santa)
The group of kids apparently thought that Titenko’s fatal collapse was part of his skit and began giggling. A woman dressed as a clown who was also part of the skit noticed Titenko’s fall and rushed to help him.
Titenko was rushed to the hospital but died before he could get there,
Santa Claus is different in Russia than in the western world. In Russia, Father Christmas sometimes wears a blue costume, and does not ride a sleigh but is normally escorted by a young woman or snow maiden.