[metal]

Happened on Saturday but I didn't hear about it until today :heckno:

Female hang glider tried to cling to pilot (http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Female+hang+glider+tried+cling+pilot+feet+fell+met res/6536019/story.html)

VANCOUVER — A female hang-glider, who detached from a tandem flight shortly after launch near Agassiz, B.C., on Saturday, tried desperately to cling to the pilot’s feet before falling 300 metres to her death.

Jason Warner, safety officer for the Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association of Canada, said the pilot knew almost immediately something was wrong after the pair launched off the popular Mount Woodside just before noon. He tried to grab the 27-year-old woman, identified as Lenami Godinez, and sought to hold on to the straps of her harness but she slid out of his grasp, grabbing his feet in a last-ditch attempt to hang on.

Godinez’s body was found by searchers about seven hours later, about 20 metres from one of the pilot’s shoes.

“(The pilot) realized right away from takeoff that something was wrong and he tried to grab her,” Warner said. “The shoe ended up being a clue to finding her.”

Upper Fraser Valley RCMP Sgt. Mark Pelz said police had received a call shortly before noon Saturday that a woman riding tandem on a glider had fallen. Police, aided by helicopter, search and rescue teams from nearby Chilliwack and Kent-Harrison, as well as local paragliders combed the terrain for hours. One of the paragliders spotted a shoe earlier in the day but didn’t link it to the pilot until just before the search was to be called off.

Warner said they retraced their steps and found Godinez, who is originally from Mexico but has lived in Canada for nine years. She had worked for the administrative services south coast region division at B.C. Ministry of Environment.

A base for the search was set up at the Koffee Kettle Motel. Owner Dahlia Simper said the woman’s boyfriend watched in horror as just a few minutes into the flight she fell out of her harness and grabbed the pilot until she could no longer hold on to him and fell.

“It’s really sad,” she said.

Simper, who has owned the motel for 10 years, said there have been several hang gliding accidents in the area in recent years.

Warner said he can’t recall a fatal accident like this happening in Canada.

“We work very hard to make sure our safety standards are adhered to,” Warner said.

He said the pilot had more than a decade of experience hang gliding all over the world and was up to date on his membership with the association, which monitors instructors. But he noted this has been “an irregular year” with two paragliding accidents in which the pilots injured their backs after failing to properly prepare for takeoff. Earlier this month, a paraglider crash-landed into a tree near Agassiz after jumping off Mount Woodside.

Warner said HPAC is considering new safety measures following Saturday’s tragedy. “We’re now strongly encouraging the buddy system where somebody looks at your equipment before you launch,” he said.

Warner said the pilot is emotional and upset. He has apologized to the woman’s boyfriend and both are receiving support from victim’s services. It was the woman and her boyfriend’s first time trying the sport, said Warner.

“At this point there is an investigation so we don’t know if it was a pilot error or an equipment failure,” he said.

The BC Coroner’s Service is investigating.

Barb McLintock, spokeswoman for the BC Coroner’s Service, said an investigation will determine whether there need to be more fail-safe measures in the sport.

“There’s nothing to suggest this is anything but a very tragic accidental death,” she said. “We need to know what happened; what went wrong.”

Pelz said the police aren’t investigating criminal charges but that could be a possibility as well as potential civil implications because the pilot was contracted to provide the service.



Read more: Female hang glider tried to cling to pilot (http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Female+hang+glider+tried+cling+pilot+feet+fell+met res/6536019/story.html#ixzz1tZyWYqqV)

[GabAlmighty]

Damn, that blows.

There's CYR 138 by there for the prison but it only goes to 1100'. I was flying back from hope the other day and saw a parasailer cruisin just west of Agassiz, probably in the same area as this.

[MindBomber]

Sent chills down my spine reading it; imaging what the man, the woman and her boyfriend were feeling as it happened...

RIP

[Recon604]

yeah i read it on the news, its pretty saddening. Boyfriend got her it for their anniversary present. And apparently now, the pilot involved is getting charged. He "withheld potential key evidence which could help determine whether he played a role in any wrong doing."

[yukikaze203]

^ this is all pretty frightening especially since i'm flying with the same pilot next month. Knowing that he's hiding stuff as well shows how irresponsible he is and as a customer, i don't really want to entrust my life to him

[GabAlmighty]

^ this is all pretty frightening especially since i'm flying with the same pilot next month. Knowing that he's hiding stuff as well shows how irresponsible he is and as a customer, i don't really want to entrust my life to him

You do realize you are jumping to conclusions based off of one sentence in a NEWS article right? And you do realize how manipulative reporters/journalists can be with their info.

[bballguy]

You do realize you are jumping to conclusions based off of one sentence in a NEWS article right? And you do realize how manipulative reporters/journalists can be with their info.

Nonetheless, I would cancel that session....You wouldn't?

[Brianrietta]

Nonetheless, I would cancel that session....You wouldn't?

Actually, I would reckon that the safest time to do an activity like that would be shortly after a major accident as the scrutiny that the procedures and gear go through in the period afterwards would ensure a higher level of safety.

In my experience nothing makes you triplecheck your gear quite like a catastrophic failure happening.

[SiRV]

RIP.

[Pooface55]

So sad to hear. Trying to grab a hold with all your might and then falling hopelessly waiting to die..... :(

[bballguy]

Actually, I would reckon that the safest time to do an activity like that would be shortly after a major accident as the scrutiny that the procedures and gear go through in the period afterwards would ensure a higher level of safety.

In my experience nothing makes you triplecheck your gear quite like a catastrophic failure happening.

Makes sense.

[Tegra_Devil]

rip

[GGnoRE]

Jesus, I can't imagine what her last thoughs would have been as she was falling. RIP

[twitchyzero]

^ this is all pretty frightening especially since i'm flying with the same pilot next month. Knowing that he's hiding stuff as well shows how irresponsible he is and as a customer, i don't really want to entrust my life to him

i would try and book it with another instructor...just saying

[MR_BIGGS]

Actually, I would reckon that the safest time to do an activity like that would be shortly after a major accident as the scrutiny that the procedures and gear go through in the period afterwards would ensure a higher level of safety.

In my experience nothing makes you triplecheck your gear quite like a catastrophic failure happening.

Just like when the safest time to go to a nightclub is the night after a shooting.

:fullofwin:

My guess would be that he withheld the video that records the activity and is sold to the customer after. It probably shows how she fell.

[Manic!]

my guess is the pilot will not be flying for a while.

[observer]

Pilot involved in fatal hang-gliding accident charged with obstructing justice (http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Pilot+involved+fatal+hang+gliding+accident+charged +with+obstructing+justice/6543221/story.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+canwest%2FF229+%28Vancouver+S un+-+News%29)

[StylinRed]

^^^ just watching about this on the news

he swallowed the memory card :fulloffuck:

I can understand him being scared of being made a scape goat but when you go that far... wouldn't be surprised if he gets some negligence charges

[shawnly1000]

Edit

^just beat me to it

[fliptuner]

Wow, my GF and I went paragliding off that mountain a few years ago. Very sad for her and her BF.

[yukikaze203]

oh the session got cancelled just now lol

[seakrait]

^^^ just watching about this on the news

he swallowed the memory card :fulloffuck:

I can understand him being scared of being made a scape goat but when you go that far... wouldn't be surprised if he gets some negligence charges

WTF. he swallowed the memory card which had the video of the fall? were the cops busting down his door or something? obviously easier ways of disposing of the card. i wonder what's on the video that makes him so nervous. unless he's all psycho from the trauma. either way, it's going to hurt coming out in a few days time.

[StylinRed]

Well according to CTV someone there told officers that the pilot/company films the whole experience so they should try getting a copy of the video and when asked by police for the video the pilot gulped down the memory card :crazy2:
(no word if said card was recovered)

[Senna4ever]

What a horrible way to die... :(

[Gumby]

Just wait for the memory card to pass through his system. :D

[BillyBishop]

RIP, that's very tragic. I often see the paragliders hanging around there.

I wonder if the memory card will even be readable after passing through his digestive tract. I mean, all that acid has got to do some sort of damage to a small chip, right?

[MWR34]

^ this is all pretty frightening especially since i'm flying with the same pilot next month. Knowing that he's hiding stuff as well shows how irresponsible he is and as a customer, i don't really want to entrust my life to him

Is this the groupon that was offered a few weeks back?

[AzNightmare]

I don't understand why would you swallow evidence?
Nothing to hide, then no reason to do such a dumb thing.

The whole point of an onboard camera is to recall and analyze events that occured.
If idiots are going to do something like eating it, the guy deserves to just go to jail for being a dumbass.
(who most likely had something to hide now)

[El Bastardo]

This whole thing is just getting bizarre.

A few years ago something similar happened in Louisiana. A company that was operating fanboat tours for years had a terrible accident. Somehow it was found that some information regarding the accident was suppressed by the company and from what I remember, it didn't turn out well.

There should be some sort of governing body for thrillseeking event hosts.

[MR_BIGGS]

Did he swallow the evidence of the video because it could show negligence on his part, opening the door up for being sued?

There is also the chance that the video shows the poor girl grabbing on to his leg and then falling when she lost grip. This is very tragic and its turning bizarre.

[originalhypa]

Did he swallow the evidence of the video because it could show negligence on his part

I can't comment on his motives, but a witness on the news last night said she spotted him miss a crucial safety check (the hang check) before he took off with this poor girl.

If that's true, it will prove that he was negligent causing death. That's bad.
I wonder if the witness could be held partly liable for not attempting to stop him after seeing that he missed the check.

[GabAlmighty]

If that's true, it will prove that he was negligent causing death. That's bad.
I wonder if the witness could be held partly liable for not attempting to stop him after seeing that he missed the check.

Le good samaritans act shall protect her.

[toyobaru]

this is probably why i used to always tell my ex i dont support the idea of her trying sky diving, paragliding, heck even bungee jumping. If you want to live life to its fullest im sure there are other better ways of living life to the fullest than jumping off high heights...

[Berzerker]

Wow reading your sig makes me wonder where the hell Jason went!???

Berz out.

[StylinRed]

I can't comment on his motives, but a witness on the news last night said she spotted him miss a crucial safety check (the hang check) before he took off with this poor girl.


Which brings into question why this lady didn't mention anything at the time

I dunno that witness seems suspicious herself when watching her being interviewed


side note he's still being remanded until he shits out the chip they're supposedly giving him xrays everyday to check if its still inside

[Great68]

I hope that it hurts like hell when he shits that card out.

[124Y]

Wow that's just sad... RIP :(

[Gridlock]

The entire province is cheering on his next bowel movement.

I look forward to the news report, "and in other news, police are now in possession of the memory card.."

Meaning, " in other news, those cries of pain in Chilliwack you heard were in deep a small rectangle exiting a round opening"

[fliptuner]

I hope that it hurts like hell when he shits that card out.

Too bad he wasn't in a US jail. Shitting that card out wouldn't be the last time he felt a foreign object up his ass.

[dangonay]

This case reminds me of a skydiver killed near Beiseker, Alberta back in the early 90's. The guy who ran the facility had a really busy weekend and brought in extra equipment from his other jump school near Edmonton.

A guys chute failed and his automatic reserve chute popped at only 100 feet, doing nothing to slow his fall. The owner of the school was caught trying to remove the chute from the dead body and was stopped by the guys friends.

A buddy of mine (who was on Canada's national skydiving team at the time) was asked by the RCMP to help investigate why the reserve didn't open in time. The answer was simple. Edmonton has an elevation of around 2,100 feet. Beiseker has an elevation of around 3,000 feet. The reserve chutes were set to open at an altitude of 3,100 feet above sea level (or 1,000 feet above the 2,100 foot elevation of the jump site near Edmonton). When they brought the extra chutes down from Edmonton for the weekend they never bothered to reset the altimeter for the reserve chutes - they were still set at 3,100 feet. Since Beiseker was at 3,000 feet the chute only popped 100 feet above ground.

Such a simple check cost someone their life. And now it looks like a simple check was missed in this case here, and like Beiseker, the person in charge tried to hide the evidence that proved there was a mistake.

[GabAlmighty]

This case reminds me of a skydiver killed near Beiseker, Alberta back in the early 90's. The guy who ran the facility had a really busy weekend and brought in extra equipment from his other jump school near Edmonton.

A guys chute failed and his automatic reserve chute popped at only 100 feet, doing nothing to slow his fall. The owner of the school was caught trying to remove the chute from the dead body and was stopped by the guys friends.

A buddy of mine (who was on Canada's national skydiving team at the time) was asked by the RCMP to help investigate why the reserve didn't open in time. The answer was simple. Edmonton has an elevation of around 2,100 feet. Beiseker has an elevation of around 3,000 feet. The reserve chutes were set to open at an altitude of 3,100 feet above sea level (or 1,000 feet above the 2,100 foot elevation of the jump site near Edmonton). When they brought the extra chutes down from Edmonton for the weekend they never bothered to reset the altimeter for the reserve chutes - they were still set at 3,100 feet. Since Beiseker was at 3,000 feet the chute only popped 100 feet above ground.

Such a simple check cost someone their life. And now it looks like a simple check was missed in this case here, and like Beiseker, the person in charge tried to hide the evidence that proved there was a mistake.

Hey but atleast he knew that his reserve chutes were all functioning properly. :e-shrug:

[Gridlock]

The entire province is cheering on his next bowel movement.

I look forward to the news report, "and in other news, police are now in possession of the memory card.."

Meaning, " in other news, those cries of pain in Chilliwack you heard were in deep a small rectangle exiting a round opening"

And we have success...

http://i.imgur.com/frcCv.jpg

[shawnly1000]

Interesting that he chose to go in front of the camera. His lawyer probably advised in doing so.

"Order also apologized for swallowing a video memory card of the fatal flight, which he said he did in a panic after the flight, but which he quickly admitted to police."

B.C. hang-glider pilot apologizes for fatal flight - British Columbia - CBC News (http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2012/05/14/bc-fatal-hang-glider-pilot-orders.html?cmp=rss)

[Noir]

Interesting that he chose to go in front of the camera. His lawyer probably advised in doing so.

"Order also apologized for swallowing a video memory card of the fatal flight, which he said he did in a panic after the flight, but which he quickly admitted to police."

B.C. hang-glider pilot apologizes for fatal flight - British Columbia - CBC News (http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2012/05/14/bc-fatal-hang-glider-pilot-orders.html?cmp=rss)


Panic from what?

If he did nothing wrong and the incident was actually a result of "pure accident," that memory card should feel like it's his trump card to innocence.

In verbatim, it sounds like nothing more than just PR damage control. In context, it's just still as sketchy as fuck.

[InvisibleSoul]

Panic from what?

If he did nothing wrong and the incident was actually a result of "pure accident," that memory card should feel like it's his trump card to innocence.

In verbatim, it sounds like nothing more than just PR damage control. In context, it's just still as sketchy as fuck.

I don't even see where they're making it sound as if it wasn't sketchy.

He knows he did something wrong. He knows he must have missed some safety checks. He knows his negligence caused the death. This is why he panicked and swallowed the memory card, but then probably realized soon after there's no way to sidestep the consequences, so he admitted swallowing the card to the police, even though he's screwed.

[AzNightmare]

What kind of memory card are we talking about?
If it's like a micro sd card or something like that...
Probably wouldn't hurt at all...
Unless he never had big constipated dumps before.

[fliptuner]

What I don't get is, why the fuck would he go through the trouble of swallowing it? He's over the fucking forest. It's not like anyone would find a 1"sq piece of plastic.

Anyways, too little, too late. He's reading from notes after he lawyered up - that doesn't really mean much, imo.

[Great68]

What I don't get is, why the fuck would he go through the trouble of swallowing it? He's over the fucking forest. It's not like anyone would find a 1"sq piece of plastic.

Anyways, too little, too late. He's reading from notes after he lawyered up - that doesn't really mean much, imo.

He probably didn't think of it until he was already on the ground. It's also probably not easy to mess with the camera while in the air anyways.

[Senna4ever]

What kind of memory card are we talking about?
If it's like a micro sd card or something like that...
Probably wouldn't hurt at all...
Unless he never had big constipated dumps before.

They're using GoPros, so it's an SD card.

[Noir]

What I don't get is, why the fuck would he go through the trouble of swallowing it? He's over the fucking forest. It's not like anyone would find a 1"sq piece of plastic.

Anyways, too little, too late. He's reading from notes after he lawyered up - that doesn't really mean much, imo.

Exactly. It's always easy to be apologetic and act all regretful when you've already done what you want and got what you got.



Hopefully that SD card is still salvageable.