Advertisement
Feyarets, a free-flying paraglider in his mid-sixties, had come to Bir-Billing for practice, ahead of the World Cup.
Although both paragliders took off separately, they collided mid-air on Tuesday. Feyarets crashed into the forest, while the other paraglider got entangled in trees and suffered injuries. He was later rescued.
Police said that Feyaret’s body is yet to be recovered from the forest.
Related Articles
Advertisement
Avinash Negi, Director of the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Mountaineering and Allied Sports (ABVIMAS) in Manali, had earlier emphasised the need for enhanced safety measures in adventure sports, particularly paragliding.
“A proposal to install special towers in high mountains to pinpoint the crash sites in case of accidents is in the pipeline,” Negi said.
While paragliders use devices to send distress and crash-landing alerts, the GPS-enabled systems provide vague location data (within 50-100 meters), which can hinder rescue efforts, an expert noted.
A total of 130 paragliders from 50 countries are expected to compete in this year’s World Cup, scheduled from November 2 to 9 in Bir-Billing.