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Zephyrhills Jump Kills Skydiver

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By Todd Leskanic of The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 4, 2008

Updated: 01/04/2008 06:00 pm

ZEPHYRHILLS - A 45-year-old man in town with a group of about 90 Finnish skydivers died during a jump at Skydive City this morning.

Authorities still were attempting to notify the man's family and hadn't released his name as of this afternoon. His family lives in Finland and didn't make the trip to Florida, said Zephyrhills police Sgt. Rob Perrault.

He was married and had three children, Perrault said.

Investigators won't know what caused the man's death until an autopsy is completed Saturday, but witnesses told police he lost control of his parachute after a hard opening.

In parachuting lingo, a hard opening refers to an inordinately hard jerk from the chute just after it's deployed. The victim in today's accident was thought to have been knocked unconscious by the strong yank, rendering him unable to steer to a safe landing.

Paul Meagher, safety and training adviser for Skydive City, said the man probably struck the ground at 15 or 20 mph.

"It wasn't a brutal impact," Meagher said, "but it was uncontrolled."

The man had completed about 95 previous jumps, Meagher said.

The autopsy could determine whether he died in the air or as a result of the impact.

Ed Scott, executive director of the U.S. Parachute Association, said hard openings are considered rare but that every few years one is cited in a parachuting death.

"You can pack a parachute 1,000 times and pack it the same way each time," he said. "And occasionally, you'll get, if not a hard opening, a spinning opening or a slower than normal opening. It's just a mechanical device with several components and occasionally something doesn't work as intended.

"Fortunately, it's extremely rare or else many of us would be walking around with injuries and concern."

The mood around Skydive City's landing area was decidedly somber today. Most jumpers declined to speak with reporters about the accident. Meagher said people with the Finnish group, who are staying at a local hotel, didn't wish to be interviewed.

Perrault said the man jumped with 19 other people this morning. They left the aircraft at 13,500 feet and were jumping individually, not in a formation. All went as planned until the man deployed his chute at about 2,500 feet.

After the man hit the ground, three other divers attempted cardiopulmonary resuscitation but couldn't revive him. He was pronounced dead at 10:35 a.m.

Reporter Todd Leskanic can be reached at (352) 521-3156 or tleskanic@tampatrib.com.

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