In the late ’90s, local television produced one of the most infamous viral videos ever recorded. A seemingly routine morning news segment featuring a grape-stomping segment-turned-competition quickly became an intentional comedy classic when Fox 5 Altanta reporter Melissa Sander lost her footing, tumbled off a platform, and unleashed a series of agonized groans that would be burned into internet history.
Though the incident happened in 1998, it wasn’t until the rise of video-sharing platforms in the mid-2000s that the clip took off. It spread through early meme culture, premises, and parodies, eventually securing a place as one of the internet’s most enduring fail videos.
A Grape Stomping Segment Gone Wrong
The fateful moment took place at the Chateau Elan Winery & Resort in Georgia. As part of a live broadcast, Sander participated in a friendly grape-stomping competition alongside a winery employee. What started as an innocent demonstration quickly spiraled into disaster.
Mid-stomp, Sander attempted to heart by calling an abrupt stop before resuming her frantic pace. Within seconds, she lost her footing, toppled over the side of the vat, and plummeted face-first to the ground below. Then came the unforgettable part: her strained, pained wailing, gasping out variations of “Stop! Stop!” and “I can’t breathe!”
The live feed immediately cut back to the studio, where two visibly uncomfortable anchors struggled to maintain composure.
Where Is The Grape Stomp Lady Now?
For years, viewers wondered what became of Melissa Sander after the infamous fall. Reports later confirmed that she fractured multiple ribs in the accident and required hospital treatment. Following the incident, she moved on to other roles in broadcasting but never publicly embraced her viral fame like some other internet sensations have.
Watch The Grape Stomp Viral Video
For those who somehow missed it or just need a reminder, relive the legendary moment here:
How The Grape Stomp Video Has Aged
I started working at eBaum’s World back in 2009, and by then, this video was already massive. It’s hard to describe how different of an era the Internet was back then. Rewatching this now, I have a lot more compassion for the woman because she’s clearly in a lot of pain. But back then, for some reason, perhaps because she was pretty cringe and annoying in her attempt to cheat, it was just hilarious.
This is definitely one of those old viral videos that hasn’t aged all that well, and I doubt it would blow up today in the same way it did back then.
This video narrowly missed our 15 Viral Videos That Changed The Internet Forever story, probably just because it’s so painful to watch.
