2 skydivers fall to their death

A SKYDIVING accident claimed the lives of two people at Swakopmund on Saturday.

Performing a tandem jump, Henry Simon (33) of Swakopmund and 23-year old Chantelle Fourie, a visitor from South Africa, exited from a light aircraft at an altitude of 10 000 metres shortly after 16h00. According to information from the Parachute Association of Namibia (Panam), Simon seemed to have experienced difficulties in opening the main parachute.He tried to activate the reserve parachute, which also allegedly malfunctioned.Personnel of International SOS who were stationed at a roadblock just east of Swakopmund noticed that the jumpers were in trouble and rushed to the airfield.Simon died instantly.Fourie died a few hours later at the Cottage MediClinic.Simon was a seasoned skydiver with 1 580 jumps, including 421 tandem jumps, under his belt.Panam and the Civil Aviation Directorate have launched an official investigation.* A married couple were injured near Uis when the motorcycle they were riding collided with a car near the turn-off to the White Lady Lodge.They were taken to the Uis clinic, from where the man was transported to a hospital in Windhoek.The exodus from the coast reached a peak between 11h00 and noon yesterday, with some 400 vehicles per hour leaving Swakopmund.According to information from the Parachute Association of Namibia (Panam), Simon seemed to have experienced difficulties in opening the main parachute. He tried to activate the reserve parachute, which also allegedly malfunctioned.Personnel of International SOS who were stationed at a roadblock just east of Swakopmund noticed that the jumpers were in trouble and rushed to the airfield.Simon died instantly.Fourie died a few hours later at the Cottage MediClinic.Simon was a seasoned skydiver with 1 580 jumps, including 421 tandem jumps, under his belt.Panam and the Civil Aviation Directorate have launched an official investigation.* A married couple were injured near Uis when the motorcycle they were riding collided with a car near the turn-off to the White Lady Lodge.They were taken to the Uis clinic, from where the man was transported to a hospital in Windhoek.The exodus from the coast reached a peak between 11h00 and noon yesterday, with some 400 vehicles per hour leaving Swakopmund.