Man Dies In Skydiving Accident At Skydive Chicago

By Kate Shepherd in News on Oct 12, 2015 3:13PM

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Richard L. Gomez, of Berwyn, was killed in a sky-diving accident Sunday morning at Skydive Chicago in Ottawa.

65-year-old Gomez was was pronounced dead on the scene at 11:02 a.m. after suffering a "hard landing" around 9 a.m., according to the Tribune. Ambulances were called to the scene immediately after the accident and LaSalle County sheriff's deputies and the coroner's office were called about an hour later.

Skydiving accidents are relatively rare. There were 24 fatal skydiving accidents out of about 3.2 million jumps in the U.S. in 2014, according to the United States Parachute Association.

Skydive Chicago did not close down for the day after Gomez's death and skydivers continued jumping.

"Another plane took off after the investigation," LaSalle County sheriff's office Cpl. Dave Woolford told the Tribune. "They're a different breed. There's a guy that jumps five or six times a day."

One of Gomez's neighbors said he was a nice guy who would shovel snow in his neighborhood.

"It's a shame," Sal Gamino told the Tribune. "It's shocking. It took my breath away when my wife told me."