Two California Sky Divers Killed in Illinois Meet

Two California sky divers fell to their deaths Saturday after they collided 100 feet above ground and their parachutes became entangled and collapsed.

Jay Zvorist, 36, of Los Angeles, and Mark Brengman, 25, of Fremont, who were taking part in an international sky-diving competition, died at Quincy Airport of massive chest injuries.

Their deaths followed that of a Canadian parachutist who jumped from a bridge in West Virginia after attending the first days of the week-long 11th annual World Freefall Convention.

The convention, which runs through today in Quincy, has attracted more than 3,000 participants from as far as Australia and South Africa.

Rescue workers searched throughout the day Saturday for Rick Stanley, 22, the Canadian parachutist who leaped from the 876-foot New River Gorge Bridge near Oak Hill, W. Va., but the searchers failed to find any trace of the jumper.

Stanley jumped from the nation’s second-highest bridge with five other people about 4:30 p.m. Thursday, state trooper L.A. Wheeler said.

The six had been participating in the Quincy convention but drove to West Virginia “for the sole purpose of jumping off the bridge,” Wheeler said.

Sky-diving at the convention continued late Saturday, despite the deaths.

Two women sky divers died in last year’s convention, which was held in Freeport, Ill.