Base jumping suspected in Nunavut fatality
Residents of Clyde River, Nunavut, were in shock this week after a man died just outside the community in what RCMP believe was a base jumping accident.
Iqaluit RCMP Cpl. Randy Slawson said Thursday that details of the Wednesday evening incident were sketchy, but it is believed the man was participating in base jumping, an increasingly popular adventure sport.
| What isbase jumping? |
|---|
| Base jumping involves parachuting off tall fixed objects such as buildings or mountain peaks. The term "base" is an acronym for the four kinds of objects jumpers can use: buildings, antennas, spans such as bridges or arches, and earth formations such as cliffs. |
The man was with a group of about eight people from Hawaii at the time of the accident.
"The investigation will involve examining… if he was base jumping if there was anything wrong with his equipment. So we'll be looking at that aspect of it," he said.
Slawson said officers will also interview any witnesses to the incident. He said the man's body will be brought back to Iqaluit by snowmobile. He has not been identified while police contact his next of kin.
Clyde River is ahamlet of about 820 people located off of Clyde Inlet on the coast of northeastern Baffin Island.