Lake Elsinore, California: Two Skydivers Killed in Midair Collision as Their Parachutes Tangled Before Landing

Two skydivers were killed on Friday after they collided in midair while preparing to land at Skydive Elsinore in Lake Elsinore, California, and fell to the ground with their parachutes entangled, the company and Riverside County officials said.

Both were licensed and experienced skydivers who had traveled from out of town for an organized event at the center. They were jumping with a group of 20 women from about 12,500 feet as part of the California Women's Upright Record team, which was attempting a world record for an upright, standing stance dive, Skydive Elsinore general manager and co-owner Josh Hall told reporters.

What happened on the descent

Skydive Elsinore said the freefall part of the jump was normal and that both skydivers opened their parachutes at the expected altitude. The collision came at the very end of the descent. "As they prepared to land, the two skydivers collided at approximately 150 feet above the ground," the company said in a statement. "The collision caused their parachutes to become entangled, and both sustained critical injuries when they reached the ground."

The company said there was no indication that any equipment had malfunctioned. Eyewitnesses reported that the freefall portion of the jump was normal and uneventful, the company said. The two skydivers were near the end of their descent, close to the landing area, when they came together. The collision happened a little more than half a mile from the center, which sits on Cereal Street in Lake Elsinore, a city in Riverside County about 75 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles.

The emergency response

Riverside County sheriff's deputies were called at about 11:47 a.m. to the 20000 block of Cereal Street for an air emergency and found the two skydivers on the ground receiving medical aid, ABC7 reported. The Riverside County Fire Department said both had suffered traumatic injuries. They were taken to a local hospital in critical condition and were pronounced dead there, Lt. Deirdre Vickers of the Riverside County Sheriff's Department told the Associated Press by email.

Skydive Elsinore said it is cooperating with local authorities.

Names withheld

The skydivers' names have not been released. Officials said the names are being withheld until their families are notified. No cause for the collision has been given, and the company said the freefall and the parachute openings showed no sign of trouble before the two came together near the ground.

Fatal skydiving accidents are uncommon in the United States. The United States Parachute Association said 16 skydivers died in jumps across the country last year, the Associated Press reported.