British Skydiver Falls To Death From 29th Floor As Parachute Fails To Open
The parachute he was holding failed to deploy and he crashed through a tree and fell to the ground.
A 33-year-old British base jumper fell to his death after leaping off the roof of a 29-storey apartment block in Pattaya, Thailand, BBC reported. As per the report, the tragic accident happened after his parachute failed to open during the stunt. The incident happened on Saturday when Nathy Odinson, 33, from Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, illegally climbed to the top of the 29-floor apartment building in the coastal resort of Pattaya.
As per security officials, he had parked his car outside the condo, sneaked inside, and went upstairs to do a base jump with his friend filming a video on the ground. After counting down and jumping, the parachute he was holding failed to deploy and he crashed through a tree and fell to the ground.
Police in Pattaya were alerted to the accident at 7.30 pm and rushed to the building where they found Mr Odinson's body on the ground. Paramedics who were called on the scene pronounced him dead and an investigation into the accident has been launched.
A security guard who heard the crash sound said that Mr Odinson had jumped from the building several times before, which posed a risk for pedestrians walking below.
Lt Kamolporn Nadee, deputy inspector of investigations at Bang Lamung district police station, said, ''The parachute that he used to jump malfunctioned and was not centered as expected. The friend who recorded the video of him jumping was questioned and the video was examined as evidence. Forensics officers are investigating the case further. They are examining the parachute.''
As per BBC, Mr Odinson was an experienced parachutist and had posted several pictures and videos of his adventures on social media.
He ran Instagram and Facebook pages under the name Nathy's Sky Photography, which documented his jumps. He also ran a sky photography company and took customers on private sky drives.
Police have informed the British Embassy in Bangkok, which is contacting his relatives in the United Kingdom. A Foreign Office spokesperson said: "We are supporting the family of a British man who has died in Thailand."
Base jumping, which involves jumping from high landmarks instead of from a plane, can be extremely dangerous as it leaves jumpers with just seconds to open their parachute before hitting the ground.
