A New York City correction officer died a day before his birthday and his instructor was critically injured Wednesday afternoon on Long Island after a skydiving accident over Calverton, police said.
The injured instructor was taken by medical helicopter to Stony Brook University Hospital. The accident happened at around 4 p.m. at Long Island Skydive, which says it has the highest jumps on Long Island at 13,500 feet.
The tandem jump went awry when there was a “parachute failure,” News 12 Long Island reported.
Norman Seabrook, president of the Correction Officers Benevolent Association, confirmed the death Wednesday evening but has not yet released the officer’s identity.
“It’s an unfortunate tragedy that we lose one of our brother officers the day before his 25th birthday,” he said. “A young man, a great officer with so much promise, our hearts go out to his family, and we will always be there for them.”
The Federal Aviation Administration will investigate.
With Ginger Adams Otis
