Crime & Safety
Victim ID'd In Fatal Skydiving Accident In South Jersey (UPDATED)
UPDATE: More details were revealed by prosecutors and witnesses after a fatal skydiving mishap happened in New Jersey.
WILLIAMSTOWN, NJ — More details have been revealed since skydiver died in an accident in New Jersey this weekend, according to authorities.
Paul Haaf Jr., 54, of Monroe Township died after he jumped out of an airplane at Skydive Cross Keys at 5:06 p.m. on Sunday in the Williamstown area and deployed his parachute, according to the Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office.
The victim’s body was found on Brookdale Boulevard in Monroe Township at approximately 5:19 p.m., according to the GCPO. The parachute was not on the skydiver when his body was found.
Find out what's happening in Gloucester Townshipfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
"I heard this whoosh. I thought it was a jet or a rocket, some kind of a rocket going over," Maria Mead, a Williamstown area resident, told CBS3. She said she then saw a shredded red parachute come down.
Read more: Parachute That Failed In South Jersey Skydiving Death Found
Find out what's happening in Gloucester Townshipfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
After the accident, the Monroe Township Police Department was dispatched to the area of Brookdale and Herbert boulevards in Williamstown after the injured skydiver was discovered in the roadway, authorities said. Haaf was pronounced dead at the scene.
Gloucester County Medical Examiner Gerald Feigin conducted an autopsy on Haaf and determined that his cause of death was multiple injuries and listed the manner of his death as accidental.
The Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office and the Monroe Township Police Department are investigating the incident with the assistance of the Federal Aviation Administration.
Haaf was described as an experienced skydiver with over 1,200 jumps and was a frequent visitor to SkyDive Cross Keys, the GCPO said.
Witnessesed told 6abc that a parachute was found near the location of a death investigation.
More details were revealed in the below videos. This is a developing story. Patch will have more information as it comes in.
UPDATE: 54 y/o male skydiver who died in an accident today was an experienced jumper ... https://t.co/quR8YCKiCd
— Annie McCormick (@6abcAnnie) April 8, 2019
UPDATE: The skydiver who fell to his death today was a 54 year old local resident. Autopsy is expected tomorrow. @6abc https://t.co/KNXD2oIYOM
— Annie McCormick (@6abcAnnie) April 8, 2019
Correction: Monroe Twp. NJ https://t.co/nEt9IUHMey
— Annie McCormick (@6abcAnnie) April 7, 2019
Williamstown, New Jersey skydiving accident claims one life https://t.co/PxYX9ioiv4
— FOX 29 (@FOX29philly) April 8, 2019
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