LAKE ELSINORE, Calif. — Two licensed skydivers died Friday after colliding in midair and crashing to the ground during an organized jumping event in Southern California, local authorities and business officials said.
The Riverside County Sheriff’s Office identified the victims on Saturday as Georgia Jean, 56, of Box Elder, South Dakota, and Levi Pimentel, 29, of Aurora, Illinois, according to CNN and ABC7 Chicago.
Disaster Near the Landing Zone
The incident occurred around noon Friday at Skydive Elsinore in Lake Elsinore, situated roughly 75 miles southeast of Los Angeles, Fox News reported. Both participants were fully licensed skydivers taking part in an organized jump.
According to a statement released by Skydive Elsinore, the free fall sequence and the initial canopy deployments went as expected. The fatal problem arose as the pair approached the landing area.
At roughly 150 feet above the terrain, the two parachutists struck one another midair. “The collision caused their parachutes to become entangled, and both sustained critical injuries when they reached the ground,” Skydive Elsinore said in a statement reported by news outlets.
The Riverside County Fire Department reported that both jumpers suffered traumatic injuries and were transported by ambulance to an area hospital in critical condition, where they were later pronounced dead.
Experienced Parachutists
Both victims possessed substantial skydiving backgrounds. Pimentel worked as a lead instructor at iFLY Naperville, an indoor skydiving center in Illinois, according to her LinkedIn profile referenced by ABC7 Chicago and Fox News.
Jean established Circle Evolution, a business she described on her website as a collaborative effort involving channel work, CNN reported. A biographical profile on Jean’s website stated she took up the sport in 2015 and had logged over 1,700 skydives.
Fatalities remain relatively rare in civilian skydiving across the United States. According to U.S. Parachute Association statistics cited by ABC7 Chicago and CNN, association members completed roughly 3.47 million jumps in 2025, resulting in 16 deaths. About 5.6 percent of members that year reported sustained injuries necessitating medical care, with landing-related ankle trauma cited as the single most frequent mishap.
Federal Inquiries Underway
The Federal Aviation Administration was contacted following the crash and will lead an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the midair collision, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office said. As part of that investigation, the FAA will impound and review the parachutes and related gear used by both jumpers.
