A skydiver was killed in north central Iowa over the holiday weekend. A 27-year-old skydiver from Puerto Rico died Sunday as the result of a failure in his parachute at the Fort Dodge Regional Airport.

The victim is identified as Julio Cesar Velez Correa. Correa was preparing to land during a skydive with eight other divers when a gust of wind caused his parachute to collapse in on itself. Correa fell 100 feet to the ground. Des Moines Skydiver representative Steve Lawyer said that Correa’s gear and safety equipment were working properly and that nothing unusual had occurred before the incident.

The winds at the time were within the margin of safety for skydiving.

By Pat Powers, KQWC, Webster City