Paraglider injured
A 45-YEAR-OLD Hillcrest man is in a serious but stable condition after getting into difficulties while paragliding in Bulwer in the KwaZulu-Natal interior yesterday.
He landed on a mountainside near the town after going into a spin.
He was stabilised before being airlifted to St Augustine’s Hospital by an air force helicopter from Durban’s 15th Squadron.
Pilot Captain Daniel van In, told the Daily News this morning the paraglider had broken his back.
However, this could not be confirmed at the time of publication.
Van In said they landed the air force Agusta A109 helicopter just after 6pm near Bulwer.
He said they arrived at the hospital at about 7pm.
Hans Fokkens, of Wild Sky Paragliding School, in Bulwer, said the man was a qualified skydiver and paraglider, but had not flown regularly in the past two years.
“He had five flights in the past two years. He was not experienced enough.
“He flew for about 20 minutes. He was not flying good and spun wildly.
“He came in to land from about 5m but landed in the wrong place due to inexperience. He hit the ground hard.
“He flew with inappropriate equipment,” Fokkens said.
Fokkens said paragliding was not dangerous if you were properly trained and kept within the limits.
“If you try to push limits and conduct unsafe stuff that’s when problems occur,” he warned. – Daily News Reporter