Parachute malfunctioned Man dies in tandem skydiving incident another in critical condition

By Abbir DibUpdated July 30, 2021 â€" 4.52pmfirst published at 3.41pm

A tandem skydiving session has turned fatal with two men crash-landing in a paddock on Victoria’s Great Ocean Road.

Emergency services were called to Fischer Street in Torquay just before 1pm, but the skydiving instructor sadly died at the scene. A man in his 50s was rushed to hospital in a critical condition.

An injured man is loaded onto an air ambulance on Friday afternoon.

An injured man is loaded onto an air ambulance on Friday afternoon.Credit:Nine News

The owner of the skydiving company that organised the jump says the parachute malfunctioned, resulting in a heavy landing

Australian Skydive owner Ralph Hamilton-Presgrave said he’s unsure what exactly went wrong.

“[The instructor] is a very experienced jumper, capable of doing everything he had to do. What transpired, I don’t know,” Mr Hamilton Presgrave said.

“It’s not a malfunctioning of the suit, the actual parachute malfunctioned.”

“The tandem jump went well. They did their free-fall and the main parachute hasn’t opened correctly. They’ve elected to use their second parachute. They ran into difficulties and landed very hard”

“The instructor has taken the brunt of the fall, the landing, and put himself in jeopardy to try and minimise the passenger’s injuries.”

Australian Skydiver refused to comment on the identity of the deceased until the family had been notified

A man in his 50s is now fighting for life after being airlifted to The Alfred hospital in a critical condition and with a broken leg.

Police will prepare a report for the coroner.

More to come

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Abbir Dib is a breaking reporter at The Age

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