Fall And Impact Caught On Helmet-Mounted GoPro Camera

Authorities said he was "lucky to be alive," and Geraldo Flores spent two weeks unconscious in a hospital with broken ribs and a lacerated tongue, but the California skydiver survived a failure of his parachute after exiting an airplane at 13,000 feet, and his fall and impact were captured on his helmet-mounted GoPro camera.

Flores was conducting his 30th freefall jump when the accident occurred. He told television station KPIX that "something went wrong" and the chute deployed early, yanking him to the side. The video shows Flores struggling with the parachute before passing out during the fall. It later shows EMS crews administering first aid as he lay unconscious on the ground.

An FAA report on the accident indicates that the parachute, which Flores had rented from Skydive Monterey Bay where he had learned the sport, should not have been used. It indicates a "critical Velcro closing flap on the equipment was completely worn," and that the rigging was also suspect. The inspectors reportedly found suspension lines to be broken and knots in some of the rigging. The inspectors said that the "lines should have been replaced before allowing this parachute to be placed in service."

Skydive Monterey Bay told the station that there was nothing wrong with the gear, and that improper use by Flores was the reason for the accident.

FMI: www.faa.gov