2 Men Die In Skydiving Tragedy At Lodi Parachute Center
ACAMPO (CBS13) -- The San Joaquin County Sheriff's Department and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating why a parachute did not open during a tandem jump on Saturday morning, killing the two men skydiving together.
It happened around 10 a.m. at the Parachute Center near the Lodi Airport.
Bill Dause, who owns the center, says one of the men was a freelance instructor who works out of the center. He believes the other man was a student who was jumping for the first time.
"It's sad when anybody loses their life, no question about that," said Dause.
Despite the tragedy, the Parachute Center remained open and busy all day.
This wasn't the first time tragedy struck the area. The latest fatality was in February, when a skydiver hit a wall. In May, a plane carrying skydivers crashed; no one was seriously hurt in that incident.
Dause admits skydiving is a risky sport.
"I think if you do your research you'll find that skydiving is a high-risk activity, but if you would like to check out any of the other drop zones, you'll find that they have the same problems that we have or that everybody else has," he said. "None of the incidents or accidents that have happened here or since 1981 have been related to each other."
Authorities have not released the identities of the two jumpers, only saying they were in their 20s.
