Canadian paraglider dies at Bir

Ravinder Sood

Palampur, November 28

A Canadian pilot, Cheval Christian Yaves Mare, was killed when his paraglider crash-landed near Bir in Kangra district this morning. Cheval was flying alone when the tragedy occurred. The cause of the accident could not be ascertained immediately.

According to information, members of the Bir Billing Paragliding Association (BPA) and local volunteers immediately reached the accident spot and rescued the injured pilot, who was caught in a tree on the Bir Billing road. After first aid, the critically-inured pilot was shifted to Vivekananda Medical Research Hospital, Palampur, where doctors declared him brought dead.

A senior government officer told The Tribune that the deceased pilot was identified from his passport recovered from his bag. He said that Cheval carried a Canadian passport No 16CA 05344. His body has been kept in the local Civil Hospital and a postmortem would be conducted tomorrow. He added that the Canadian Embassy in New Delhi had also been informed.

The failure of the government to put in place a safety mechanism has made paragliding a risky affair not only in Billing, but also in other such places in the state. The death of a Mohali-based tourist in Kullu last year had brought a bad name to the Tourism Department.

In 2018, Singaporean pilot Kok Chang died after his paraglider crash-landed in the Dhauladhar hills. His body was found trapped in dense forests. Besides, two foreign pilots — one Russian and another Latvian — had sustained serious injuries when their gliders crashed near Jhatingari in Mandi district and in the Bundla hills of Palampur. Both of them had taken off from Billing.

Another missing pilot, Jostewis, was rescued from the mountains by a team of rescuers. A senior official claimed that all pilots involved in the recent accidents had adequate flying experience. However, due to a sudden change in the weather accompanied by high-velocity winds, they were blown away to different directions.

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