Woman dies after Sallisaw skydiving incident
SALLISAW, OKLA. - A woman died in a skydiving incident Saturday after she went into a spin with her parachute open, police reported.
Emergency crews were called to the City of Sallisaw Airport about 3:30 p.m. Saturday where a skydiver had hit the ground.
Heather Glasgow, 44, of Poteau, was taken to a hospital where she was pronounced dead.
Paul Tucker, owner of the Sallisaw skydiving center, reacted to her death.
"The management and staff of Adventure Skydive Center are in shock by this accident, and we express our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Heather. Heather had made a tandem skydive six weeks before her solo jump, and we had come to know her as an eager and energetic, well-liked person. We are deeply saddened by thistragedy and mourn her passing," Tucker said.
Police reported she had struck the ground after an unknown issue arose during the skydive.
Witnesses stated her parachute had fully deployed, but she was in a spin that she did not recover from, police reported.
She was taken to Northeastern Health Systems Sequoyah where she was pronounced dead at 8:05 p.m. Saturday.
Sallisaw police investigators were working with Federal Aviation Administration and the Oklahoma Medical Examiner’s Office to determine what happened, police reported.
Glasgow had previously conducted a tandem skydive and attended two First Time Jump classes at Adventure Skydive Center in Sallisaw, police reported.
The Adventure Skydive Center was closed Sunday, according to their Facebook page.
In a statement from Tucker, Glasgow suffered injuries in the jump. Tucker said Glasgow was making her first solo jump.
"The early stages of her skydive were reported as normal, having had a routine parachute deployment without incident," Tucker reported.
Tucker states that the parachute appeared to be fully functioning and operational as Glasgow executed theparachute maneuvers as instructed during her training.
After a short time, however, witnesses observed her parachute beginning to turn without any corrective action. The jumper landed hard, causing life-threatening injuries, Tucker reports.
Adventure Skydive Center personnel are cooperating with local authorities and the FAA to determine the cause of the accident, Tucker said.
This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: Woman dies Saturday in Sallisaw skydiving accident
