Video Recovered From Helmet Leads To Assumption Of Drowning

Two BASE jumpers who leaped from a bridge with a view of the Pacific ocean have apparently drowned after the jump, though no bodies have been recovered from the accident.

What has been recovered is video from the helmet worn by one of the jumpers attempting the 300 foot fall into Bixby Creek near Big Sur, CA, which feeds into the pacific. The Wichita Eagle reports Mary Katherine "Katie" Connell (pictured) of Ventura, CA leaped from the bridge, and the camera on her helmet caught the fall. But shortly after she landed, she was overcome by large waves. Sheriff Steve Bernal said that "as the water retreats back into the ocean, Connell and the parachute are not seen retreating back to shore."

A friend of Connell's, also a BASE jumper, and whose name has not been released, leaped from the bridge in an attempt to save her. His body has also not been found. Bernal said that the friend apparently took off his helmet and parachute as he attempted the rescue, and that is where the video ends.

Authorities think that the accident occurred Wednesday, several days before the discovery on Sunday of an abandoned rental car, and then a helmet and parachute partially buried in the sand near the bridge. The rental car company provided the name of the renter, who has a long history of BASE jumping and skydiving. The only information released about him is that he is apparently from Finland. Connell was also reportedly an experienced skydiver with more than 300 jumps.

(Katie Connell pictured in image from Facebook)

FMI: www.basejumper.com