A 29-year-old Singaporean was killed in a tragic accident on Saturday afternoon during a tandem skydiving incident that went horribly wrong in Sydney, Australia, according to various media reports.
Mario Low Ke Wei, as well as his 60-year-old skydiving instructor Adrian Lloyd, were killed when the two plunged to their deaths and crashed into the driveway of a Wilton home, about a kilometre away from the Sydney Skydivers’ designated dropzone.
A spokesman from Sydney Skydivers noted that it remains unclear what went wrong, and the exact causes are still under investigation. The company assured the public that Lloyd was a “highly experienced” instructor, with nearly 30 years of experience and almost 10,000 skydives completed.
“The jump was from normal height and it is not yet clear what occurred,” it wrote, adding that it closed the centre the day after the tragedy, out of respect to both men who lost their lives.
Nonetheless, Low’s family are at “a loss for words” and are demanding answers to get a sense of closure on the accident. Daily Mail reports that safety officers from the Australian Parachute Federation are assisting with the investigation, and more information will be released once it’s complete.
Sydney Skydivers also noted that this was the first fatality it had involving a first orientation tandem skydive. But according to ABC News, this was not the company’s first fatality. Two men died under Sydney Skydivers’ watch five years ago, while another two men died in 2001.
The young victim had only just moved to Sydney last month for work under Credit Suisse, and he was described as an adventurous, jovial individual, as well as a fishing enthusiast.
For now, the Singapore High Commission in Canberra is in touch with Low’s family in Singapore to render consular assistance.
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