PERRY, New York — One man died in a skydiving accident in the Town of Perry around noon on Saturday, according to New York State Police.
Police identified the victim as Richard Cordero, 68, of Bergen.
He had more than 45 years of skydiving experience, but this time something went wrong.
"He jumped out of the plane. The parachute released normal, but then the lines got tangled and he just plummeted down and was unable to release or untangle the line," Trooper James O'Callaghan said.
Cordero flew out of the Perry/Warsaw airport with three others. All four individuals jumped from the plane, and the other three landed safely.
The Perry Fire Chief Dave Laraby told 2 On Your Side the pilot realized something wasn't right.
"He had noticed that one of the skydivers was trailing off away from the airport. He then kind of followed the skydiver, and circled the skydiver, and indicated to the airport that there was an incident with one of the members from the run," Laraby said.
Once troopers and first responders got the scene, they tried to save Cordero, but their efforts were ultimately unsuccessful.
Cordero was pronounced dead at the scene.
O'Callaghan said the accident leaves investigators with a lot of questions.
"Was it a malfunction with the equipment? Was the equipment maybe faulty equipment? Did he have a medical issue, and that's the reason why he couldn't control where he was going and what was going on? Did that cause the tangle because he was unconscious?" O'Callaghan said.
The Federal Aviation Administration and State Police are looking to find some of those answers.
"We don't believe there was any foul play in this, but we're still gonna continue with this investigation," O'Callaghan said.
There is an autopsy scheduled, which police believe will answer some of those questions.
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