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Subscribe to RSSUpdated at 7:59 a.m. ET: NORTH BEND, Wash. -- Rescue crews on Sunday suspended their efforts to find a Florida skydiver outfitted in a wing suit, who disappeared after jumping from a helicopter Thursday afternoon.
Kurt Ruppert, 29, of Lake City, Fla., is a seasoned skydiver, according to a friend, and when he disappeared he was wearing a brown-and-green jumpsuit that has swaths of fabric beneath the armpits that allow the wearer to glide like a flying squirrel.
About 145 volunteers over the weekend canvassed a nine-mile area near North Bend, Wash., that includes 4,200-foot Mount Si, the steep flanks of which are covered with trees. The peak is popular with hikers even though the last summit scramble can be treacherous. At the foot of the steep side of the mountain is the flat, sprawling Mountain Meadows Farm.
Ruppert was skydiving with two friends, and they were taking turns jumping from the helicopter. The friends were waiting at a grassy landing area, but no one saw whether Ruppert's chute deployed.
"The guys on the ground could not see where he jumped from their angle, and the pilot couldn't see when he went out the door because he was focused on flying," said King County Sheriff’s spokeswoman Cindi West.
Ruppert’s parachute was blue, West said, but she said she was told that wing-suit fliers don't deploy parachutes until they reach an altitude of 2,000 feet.
"The speed and height of the jump would enable him to travel a large distance in a short amount of time," West said.
As rescue teams searched, officials tracked his cell phone and flight pattern to better discern where he might have fallen. Nineteen agencies assisted in the rescue effort.
Authorities know the flight pattern of the aircraft, but a number of factors have made it difficult to find Ruppert.
"It's dangerous and difficult,” West said. “The footing is bad and there are lots of cliffs."
Ruppert isn’t dressed or equipped to stay out overnight, authorities said.
Ruppert has been skydiving seven or eight years and is good at handling a wing suit, said a friend, Art Shaffer, owner of Skydive Palatka in Palatka, Fla.
Shaffer jumped with Ruppert at midnight on New Year's Eve and said Ruppert left Tuesday to jump with friends in Washington.
Ruppert is single and once owned a landscaping business, said Shaffer, who is in contact with Ruppert's family and friends.
"We've got our fingers crossed," he said.
The search resumed Sunday morning at the Mount Si trailhead in North Bend, Wash.
This article includes reporting by The Associated Press and NBC News' Isolde Raftery.
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Probably tried to fly the snow chute on the west face and crashed. The winds were coming from the East direction yesterday and he could have lost what little lift he had with a wind gust.
Sorry to hear about this. Truth be told, you don't get to meet many retired stunt pilots and professional skydivers for a reason. At least he did it doing something he loved.
Winged jumpsuits create no lift at all. They extend a glide path.
Let us know if they find DB Cooper while looking.
DICK 2100935! YES, you are a DICK, which one of those numbers is our IQ, I go for ZERO... Man may have died and you joke... Wish I had your full name to watch for OBIT's and send the Baptist Church to protest your living..
How would I know your IQ and why would I care?
Man may have lived, I try to think positive.
I didn't know the Baptist were big protesters, even though they are Protestant. Thanks for the heads up though, I'll keep an eye out for the movement-a-coming. You sir may go in peace now and try not to be so set in the mind, get laid, that usually helps change the day for most.
Oh Dennis - knock it off!! You lost all credibility when you brought religion into the picture. LMAO!
I have watched video footage of these jumpers in their winged suit's, it is so hazardous as to be un-real.
I think the 'flying squirrel' description was enough for me................
This is definitely living on the very edge, and sometimes you go over the cliff. I sincerely hope he makes it, but if he doesn't he knew the risk going in. That's the thrill of doing it.
Check out this link below (hope it works) if you have not seen anyone flying in a squirrel suit before. Unbelievable.
These guys aren't jumping from helicopters, but off cliffs. The part where three of them jump off at the same time and start flying is awesome.
Gotta be the closest thing to actually flying. Not a lot of room for error though.
http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=1778399&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=&fullscreen=1
Everytime you jump from a fine flying aircraft you risk your arss. Many times the result is a resounding "splat". They call that a sport?? Obviously the man knew the risk of his activity.
dennis, this guy was rolling the dice and the odds were lower for him than in many of the risky things people do. not like this was a tragic, unexpected accident that came out of nowhere.
in some things there's no room for even a bit of mild humor. this isn't one of them.
He may have gone to Damon's for Wings Night.
With a brown/green suit his only chance to be found might be if he landed in snow. Couldn't he find a color that was more camouflaged?
The article says his suit was green and gold - I guess it depends on the shade of green/gold & where he landed on how easy/hard it is to spot.
Why is he jumping in 40 degree weather? He couldn't do his foolish thing in the summer in safer areas? Maybe over a desert? No, got to do it the selfish brainless way. Well really I don't think anyone should risk their lives climbing a mountain looking for him as he obviously wasn't considering the safety of others and was just out to please himself.
Hey when we get some snow and sleet here I think I am going to go out drag racing on the hilly back roads. Hope I don't swerve and kill anyone but if I do at least they died doing what I love...
Looks like yet another Darwin Award will be given.
Look in the trees.
Okay all you skdivers and thrill-seekers, before you go out, check with Frozecarbonite first to make sure that the weather suits him. Otherwise he'll think your brainless.
If it requires someone to go rescue your ass maybe you should consult the weather before you go do your thing Gumps.
My previous comment still applies.
Zed's dead banned, re-reg of Free Market fan.
Isn't jumping from a plane or perfectly functioning aircraft somewhat dangerous even with a parachute? The guy likely smashed into a tree or the ground. I hope he survived but I can't be saddened by anyone doing dangerous activities and death occurs. He knew what he was getting into when he started jumping for sport.
You might ask the millions that jump all the time, or the military that dropped thousands in Europe in WW2! ~~~~ Define a perfectly functioning aircraft? There is NOT a single aircraft that has parachutes for escape, I can't see 600 passengers jumping out of the A380 over the ocean, extending your life for ten minutes is a great option! ~~~~ Glad you can't be saddened by anyone doing dangerous activities, that means that everyone in military can come home and stop working in your place to protect the United States.. Best you buy a Koran and learn to pray..
I'll never understand doing an activity for fun, where if "anything" goes wrong, you will die. I also can't see risking my very life on a device, that if it fails, you have a very high probability of dying.
Just as people smile and shout once they complete their death defying activity, I chuckle to myself whenever I hear about someone dying in the quest of having fun.
BP the grape
If you drive a car you are at risk also. I have skydived and it is exhilarating. Extensive training goes into it. Any sport is risky. How many kids are injured in football and what you'd consider "safe" sports. I suggest you may have fun if you try something different. And you chuckle? Wow-how awful.
Many people choose to participate in what are called "risk activities". This includes skydivers, mountain climbers, skiers, whitewater paddlers, and many others. Their decision to do so is entirely their own. Let's face it -- driving your car is a risk activity. Mowing your lawn is a risk activity. Walking into your kitchen or bathroom is a risk activity. Getting out of bed in the morning is a risk activity. It's all just one continuous spectrum, and each person has the right to decide for themselves where they choose to draw the line. Live your own life, and let others live theirs.
The good news is the ground is frozen so he should have bounced.
Condolences to his family and friends. If he went down, it was quick. He didnt suffer. They atleast have that to console them.
As a long time radical skier and crazy stunt maniac myself, I can relate. He absolutely went doing what he loved. And he knew the risks.
Or maybe he is lying somewhere alert and paralyzed. You hope it was quick and he didn't suffer. You know nothing specifically.
It ain't over until its over...doesn't look good, but maybe he'll come up OK.
I feel pretty confident he went quick, considering what wing suit flying is. Its a no room for error sport, with severe consequences when things go wrong.
Heres a video for anyone who isnt sure what this sport is:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttz5oPpF1Js
You dont survive hitting rocks at 100mph+
True believers, I see them everyday in the summer riding motorcycles without helmets, in the winter sking out of control without helmets and acting like there in an action movie or something.
They somehow have convinced themselves that nothing bad will ever happen to them, well guess what.
I blame their mommies, they protect them from every little thing growing up while telling them their so smart and so special they can do anything.
Dude, a helmet becomes a bucket at 160/mph....
aint gonna matter
If you're riding without a helmet at 160 MPH, you pretty much deserve whatever happens to you when you lose control, and high-side into a pole.
Wingsuiting is a discipline of skydiving which one can't even get into until around 200 jumps (about two years of experience for the average jumper). In our sport there is more emphasis on safety than in any other sport with new safety guidelines coming out monthly in rigging, and deployments sequence. Truth is high school cheerleaders spend more time in the hospital than skydivers do. Just because you see no value in a life affirming sport, or would never be able to muster the courage to live beyond the status-quo does not make those who do "special children with deficient mommies" We do not believe we are invincible, or untouchable. On the contrary we are quite aware of our mortality we make an active choice to take in all that life has to offer so then when our time comes to pass on the the next plane we have no regrets, no last thoughts of, "Man, I wish I had done more"
" The goal of life is not to arrive at the grave safe and sound and in one piece, it is to get there out of breath, sore, bleeding, and utterly spent declaring with your dying breath, "Man what a ride!!" "
What would be your opinion if he was an only child and his parents died in a plane crash when he was two years old? ~~~~~ Gotta laugh at the logon of the guy that's taken time out of his life to post under the name of "Mymondidnotraiseafool" You just proved that is a lie....LOL
I ride motorcycles, and I ALWAYS wear a helmet and a full leather suit for protection. I've had people I know get killed while riding, but 99% of the time they were doing something that was highly risky at the time. Like speeding around blind turns on the wrong side of the road, hoping a car isn't coming the opposite direction, or extreme speeds on a curve that if there is loose sand or gravel on it, you'll lose control and crash into a mountainside or go off a 2,000 foot cliff. I've seen it happen. That's why I ride fast, but leave a buffer zone where I can recover if something unexpected happens. And I would never ride on the opposite of the road on a blind turn. I do get left a few minutes behind those who take the higher risk, but I'd rather be 2-3 minutes behind, then permanently behind.
There are guys who have done this for years with no issues, and those who died the first or fifth time they did it. I have just as much fun as they do, and can't see I would have "more" fun if I pushed the envelope. Pushing the envelope, and doing something that has you going all out, are two entirely different things. I've seen people crash, who aren't hardly injured, and those who broke bones or multiple bones. You aren't going to the hospital if your parachute doesn't open, you are going to be scraped up and put in plastic baggies.
I'll stick to activities that have a chance of injury and possibly fatal, rather then one that guarantees you will die if something goes wrong.
There is a reason "Rocky the Flying Squirrel" was a squirrel, and not a human.
Condolences yet comedy, as the risks were known.
FreeThinker and worth every cent.......
Sad to say but the least pf this guys problems is the cold temperature. I saw a video of one of these jumpers slight;y hit his leg on a rock whule flyimg 150 mph....he was really lucky to have survived as it barely scraped but enough to hurt alot. Any direct impact is like hitting a brick wall at 150 mph. no chance.
play stupid games and win stupid prizes
Do your practice?
While I support this man's right to risk his own life I would like to point out that 19 agencys are being utilized to presumeably find his corpse.
I would suggest that if people wish to engage in risky behaviors where governmental support may need to be called out for searches that they be required to post a bond or have proof of insurance that will compensate the public for expenditures relating to search and rescue operations.
When this Country finally gets serious about actually doing something about the deficit, governmental agencys will not have the budgets the do today......
Hopefully they will find him hung up in a tree somewhere still alive. 2000ft is not a lot of time to deploy. If something had gone wrong there is little time to compensate with a secondary chute....if one was even used.
The problem with that is that people will not report missing hikers, skiers, climbers, and yes- guys like this - soon enough to locate them alive because of the cost involved. However, fining those people climbing mountains or skiing in avalanche areas without beepers should be done.
Always, there will be those who measure life only in terms of money and costs to themselves through their tax dollars. Henry F. Potter would be quite proud.
perhaps there should be a special tax collected to help defray the cost. An actuary can easily figure this out.
yeah, I have to wonder about the use of public $$ to look for this guy. i know it's not an exact either/or, but it is striking that so many resources are spent trying to rescue wealthier folks who do stupid things for fun vs. rescuing kids who live in poverty everyday (23% of children in the US.)
I have been saying this for years! What would it take to carry a gps tracking device?
I like the GPS tracking device idea. I'm sure there was a time when only one parachute was used....
It should be a fairly simple thing for jump schools to advocate the use of trackers....after all people don't just go out and buy a parachute and rent a plane and jump out of it. They have to be "qualified" first.
CALL OUT TO ALL Base Jumpers and Parachuting thrill seekers! Wear a gps tracker and when the find you it might not be too late. After all Life flight only costs about $17 grand a flight.
My best wishes on the search.
(And why am I reminded of D.B.Cooper?)
D. B. Cooper? Probably because of the parachute and the fact it was in Washington - although the southern part of the state.
Ruppert wasn't born the day the Cooper hijacked the plane and stole that money.
@Grumps, yea but they have J.B. Cooper days here every year. It's a blast, you need to attend one.
I'll stick with the Guy Fawkes Day celebrations myself.... besides, I like the masks.
@AlexTheBlade, well not too many, if any masks here, but what you see is the real thing. It is a lot of clean fun, and it's a blast watching the undercover FBI agents trying to mingle with the people. What they haven't understood from the first party, most of us know each other, either by sight, or by friends of friends who know who you are. Needless to say, nobody knows, nor wants to know the feds.
But damn, if you attend, have a desginated driver, it can be a little on the wild side at times. But really, just great fun, great food, and good booze.
It is true, people have the right to live life as they choose, while some will be more cautious then others who will take extraordinary risks, pushing themselves to the supreme limit, as if defying death itself to try to claim their lives.Folks can debate if costs should be attached to those which end up involving the taxpayers money, or if due to foolishness fines added. Around and around the talk will flow.
There is however another angle I believe needs reviewing. Those who give their unconditional love and support to us. Which I believe becomes a stewardship that we then owe to them. A sacred trust we take upon ourselves to protect, honor and respect with all our heart, mind and soul.
Therefore, our life does not belong to us completely.But we have a duty to protect it, live it well, not take undue risks and chances which could have an unnecessary chance of leading to our death.Though all mortals must pass through its portal. For fate will surely step in and end our journey where we have goals yet to reach.
However, for those who cherish us, above all else, is it our right to risk breaking their hearts, unless there be a truly worthy cause? Let us ask ourselves are selfish thrills and the rush of adrenalin, worth the risk each time, if we may die, and devastate those we leave behind? Should fate let one see their destiny and they be gone from earth, would they forestall, and stay death's call? Could they honor love divine and remain behind? Like a drug addict who must have his fix, some seem to get caught up in these kinds of sports. Like a moth to the flame.
I hope this individual is found safe. We all only get one life to live, one body to care for and only one moment,in a chain of moments to make choices, to see how wisely we will use them.May he have many more chances for better days ahead of him.And his loved ones be comforted with his happy return, safe and perhaps realizing how precious life is even more.
Windancersong,
Yeah, but we're all going to die someday-
It's always sad for those left behind.
I bet he won't make that mistake again.
I never got beyond hang gliding. I kind of like the idea of having my wings deployed prior to the event. Wish I could have gotten an ultralight while I was still able.
Re cost of search effort: Several thoughts. In AZ we have a "Stupid Motorist Act". If you need assistance after you were stupid enough to cross a barricaded wash, you pay the bill. I like that. Fewer mothers with babies/children strapped in. On the geek side... Someone should write a simple phone app which constantly streams gps and accelerometer data. Greatly improve locating.
Stupid motorists in Arizona are the vast majority.
Yep. We import them from all the other states once they are old.
Darwin
Kerrr-splatttt!
OMGosh!! You guys are in rare form this morning! Too Funny!
Why would you make your "suit" the same color as the forest? Finding him now will be so hard. Floridians.
I wondered the same thing. I think I feel worse for the folks searching for his foolish hide than I do for him. A potential Darwin Award here.
It is sad for his family though.
LMAO! You guys are so crazy!
While I do hope he is not hurt, I also hope that he or his family or his insurance company bear the search and rescue/recovery costs. When someone deliberately does something this dangerous, it should not fall to to the taxpayers to pay for the consequences.
Every time you turn around, the taxpayers are stuck for the search and rescue of idiots. Maybe they should not have the search and rescue for certain activities, like sky diving, climbing Mt Hood, kayaking in the rivers, etc etc.
If people are going to act stupid, hey, without search and rescue saving them, we would be able to start thinning the herd of stupids. Sounds good to me.
Sally, same thing could be said of people who eat too much and have a heart attack. Or drink too much and have liver issues. Or drive over the speed limit and get in an accident. Or drive period for that matter..Or not living in a bomb shelter and get hit by a meteor. Or any number of risky activities taxpayers end up covering when things go wrong.
And Im pretty confident thinking we could find something "risky" you do, that would exempt you from any emergency services. After all, we taxpayers shouldnt have to pay for your mistakes, right?
Remember that the next time you eat a potato chip, have beer, smoke a cigarette, drive, fly, take a bus, order pizza, whatever. Because there is nothing you do that isnt without some risk.
What a wonderful world that would be huh., ...
Check these guys out! http://player.vimeo.com/video/31481531?autoplay=1
Fast forward through the first part if you want.
Holy crap!!! Absolutely amazing!!! Thanks for the link jpoochoo-1527514!
Far frikin out, made my butt pucker.
Awesome . Thanks for the link.
Glad you all liked it. I've never seen anything even close to that - ever!
Here's another one you guys might like. It's not fake, either. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xjF3ZtS9COE
Whoa!!!!
A mandatory requirement for all idiots who jump out of perfectly good airplanes should be for them to wear Personal ELTs. That one simple, inexpensive item would have prevented any of the "we have to search thousands of acres to find this moron". Mandatory requirement for a P-ELT to be a permanently-affixed part of the parachute = problem solved.
Smack the ground at 160 mph, the P-ELT goes off, and they can find the bloody smear that's left in about 10 minutes. And because they're a regulated item, there are fines if you set one off on purpose when there's no accident involved, and the serial number of the device tells the SAR folks who's estate to bill.
Can't fix stupid, but at least the costs of the search or recovery can be recouped.
Did anyone else notice the line reading "...and when he disappeared Thursday afternoon, he was wearing a brown-and-green suit..."?
This moron might as well have been wearing camouflage. I already knew he was a total idiot for intentionally jumping out of an airplane, but this just confirms the full depth of his rank stupidity.
Wearing a suit that's the same color as nature has exactly one result: It makes it impossible for the smear he left on the ground to be located. Another requirement (aside from P-ELTs) ought to be that at least 51% of all personal skydiving suits, and 100% of personal parachutes must be made from neon-colored material. That way, the SAR professionals have an easier time finding what's left, when the law of averages catches up with you because you made stupid decisions like jumping out of an airplane. If you need that much "excitement" in your life, there's something definitely wrong with you.
Eagles may soar, but a weasel never gets sucked into a jet engine.
Sorry, for the loss to this person's family, but if you think playing with death threatening behavior always comes out positive, you often end that thinking in future generations...
Crazier and crazier ideas of how to get a kick or a little respect is a natural selection process and always has been. Men who thought that they could get a beautiful mate by entering into hand to hand combat with a cave bear did not leave many offspring.
This behavior is not an example of bravery, it is an example of desperation for attention.
Tex...ok, then stay in the cave. There are some people who do things just because they like it....not "for attention." While I agree that others should not have to pay for their rescue, I do think it is silly how Americans selfishly think everything others do is merely done to win their precious attention.
Not everyone gets their jollies growing fat watching the wild kingdom on network tv. We live in a modern era...not everything has to be work 24/7 and a fight for mere reproduction...very primitive. Some people actually want to get out and maximize their enjoyment of life.
Just like a old jumpmaster once told me in the Army, only 2 things you will see, coming out of the sky, bird @!$%# and civilians.
Believe me...there's a lot of military crap falling from the skies as well.
Q-What was he last thing to go through his mind???
A- A rock outcropping.
Thrill seeking has it's price.
Hope they find him before the animals do.
Of course he's still alive. He just got abducted by hillbillies with rifles. It is Washington state.
Somewhere in WA State tonight there are pig squeals and banjos playin.
Look for a blue wet spot on ground...