A 53-year-old paraglider falls to death in Tamil Nadu's Coimbatore
Highlights
- Coimbatore man fell to his death from a height of around 60 metres
- Witnesses say his safety harness was not attached properly
- A video recorded by a spectator showed him hitting the ground with a thud
A 53-year-old businessman parasailing at a college festival in Tamil Nadu's Coimbatore on Sunday fell to his death from a height of around 60 metres - as high as a five-floor building - as his safety harness was not attached properly.
A video recorded by a spectator shows Malleshwara Rao taking off at the Codissia grounds and within moments, dropping and hitting the ground with a thud. A sudden commotion when he was still in the air suggested that people were already scrambling towards him, realizing that his harness was giving way.
Witnesses say he was hanging precariously with his safety belt unfastened to the paragliding gears. He was declared dead in a hospital.
"We are investigating. It appears the safety harness was either not latched to the glider or it was latched but snapped later," said a police officer. He said that the organisers had not asked for police permission.
The parasailing festival was part of a three-day function organized by the Coimbatore Medical College. Tickets for a turn were sold at Rs 500.
The private parasailing operator hired for the event, Glider Babu, is allegedly missing. The police are searching for him.
Also under investigation is the fact that there was not a single ambulance at the venue.
Malleshwara Rao was said to be passionate about adventure sports.