Two women skydivers die after midair collision near Lake Elsinore, California

Two women skydivers were killed Friday, Nov. 6, when they collided under open parachutes while preparing to land near Lake Elsinore, a Riverside County city about 75 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles.

The collision happened around 11:45 a.m., according to the Riverside County Fire Department. Both women were taken by ground ambulance to Inland Valley Medical Center in Wildomar in critical condition and were later pronounced dead.

Their names have not been released pending notification of next of kin.

What the drop zone says happened

Skydive Elsinore, the center that hosted the jump, said both women were licensed and experienced. Eyewitnesses reported the freefall portion was "normal and uneventful," and that both jumpers opened their parachutes at the expected altitude, the center said in a statement.

"As they prepared to land, the two skydivers collided at approximately 150 feet above the ground," the statement said. Their canopies became entangled, and both sustained major injuries when they hit the ground.

The collision occurred a little more than a half-mile from the drop zone. The center said there is no indication of an equipment malfunction and that it is cooperating with local authorities.

Riverside County Sheriff's Lt. Deirdre Vickers said deputies were called to the 20000 block of Cereal Street shortly before noon for a report of an air emergency. They found the two skydivers on the ground receiving medical aid. Vickers said the investigation is ongoing and no further details were available.

A record attempt in progress

The women were part of a group training to set a California record for the largest all-women formation in the upright orientation, in which participants appear to be sitting in the air, according to Chazi Rutz, a 46-year-old professional skydiver from Arizona who was jumping with the group.

Rutz said the existing record for the discipline is a 12-way formation. The group was aiming for 19.

Drop zone spokesperson Josh Hall said the two women were visiting from out of town and were participating in the California Women's Upright Record team, which was organizing the attempt. Hall said Skydive Elsinore was hosting the event, not organizing it. A calendar posting listed the event as scheduled through Sunday. Organizers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Rutz described the women as experienced skydivers who were passionate about the sport, and as "outgoing, kind, fun women to be around." He said the group held hands in freefall Friday morning and that the first minute was uneventful.

According to Rutz, the trouble came after the parachutes were deployed. He said the two women got too close to each other and their open canopies tangled. "We were doing something we loved, working toward a common goal," he said. "We're saddened by this accident ... sometimes all you can do is just breathe."

Rutz's account and the drop zone's account line up on the basics: normal freefall, normal deployment, a collision under canopy. A cause has not been announced.

Wind and the open questions

Northeast winds blew through the Inland Empire throughout the day, with gusts of up to 20 mph recorded around March Air Reserve Base, about 14 miles east of Lake Elsinore. It is unclear whether wind played a role in the incident.

How the sport's numbers look

The United States Parachute Association estimated there were 3.47 million jumps in the U.S. in 2025, resulting in 16 deaths. The association describes that figure as low compared with the sport's deadliest years in the 1970s.

The association also says that while many people assume equipment failure causes most skydiving accidents, "the vast majority are a result of simple human error." That is a general statement about the sport, not a finding about Friday's collision.

The region has seen other incidents. In March 2023, a woman training to skydive solo flew her parachute into live power lines in Lake Elsinore. Riverside County firefighters rescued her, and she walked away without injuries. In May, one person was killed and another injured in a skydiving accident in Perris.

The sheriff's investigation is ongoing.

Skydive Elsinore's statement ended with condolences: the center "extends its deepest condolences to the families, friends, and loved ones of both skydivers, and is grieving alongside all those affected."