©JL Lacar via Unsplash
Two women wearing wingsuits were seriously injured in an accident in Vorarlberg, Austria, on Saturday afternoon after they collided in mid-air.
The jump took place above Hohenems in the district of Dornbirn and was part of a joint group jump. 15 skydivers had taken off by plane from the Hohenems-Dornbirn airport and then jumped into the air from about 4,000 meters with their wingsuit. But things went wrong for a 32-year-old Swiss and a 48-year-old German.
According to Austrian police, the 48-year-old woman approached from behind at high speed while the Swiss was in a gentle right turn. Then both women collided in mid-air. The sideways collision in mid-air temporarily made the 32-year-old loose consciousness. Her parachute opened automatically, but she lost control of the flight. During her descent, she hit a power line and then plunged into the Old Rhine River. Two alert swimmers rescued her from the water, after which she was admitted to Dornbirn hospital. She is in critical condition.
The 48-year-old woman also became unconscious, but was still able to manually activate her parachute. However, a controlled landing was no longer possible. She too encountered a high-voltage power line and fell to the ground from about ten meters. She sustained serious, but not life-threatening injuries and was taken to Feldkirch hospital.
The wingsuit jumpers could not yet be questioned due to their injuries, so it's not yet entirely clear what exactly happened. The Criminal Court in Feldkirch has already had the parachutes and wingsuits confiscated for investigation.
©JL Lacar via Unsplash - illustration image