Skydiver falls to death

Editor's Note: This story has been updated on Friday, May 22, at 1:25 p.m. from a previous version.

By Nathan Mayberg
SUSSEX — A Basking Ridge man died from injuries on Friday suffered in a skydiving accident a day earlier at Sussex Airport.

Paul Hayes, 38, was taking part in a skydiving exercise with a group of skydivers on Thursday afternoon when he fell unexpectedly to the ground due to a "problem in landing," according to state police Captain Stephen Jones.

Jones said an investigation shows the accident may have been caused by a "misjudgment by the victim." He would not elaborate further because the incident is still under investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration.

Hayes jumped from a plane at around 1:30 p.m. with a fully operational parachute before the dive went wrong and he fell to the ground, state police said.

Hayes was a "seasoned jumper," Jones said. "He was found severely injured at the airport."

Hayes was attended to by Saint Clare's paramedics and Wantage EMS. He was transported to Newton Medical Center before being flown by helicopter to Morristown Medical Center.

He was pronounced dead by the Morristown County Medical Examiners at 6 p.m. on Friday due to unspecified injuries.

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the incident, Jones said.

Sussex Skydive co-owner Curt Kellinger was in the plane with Hayes before the tragic incident unfolded.

"He was a really good guy," Kellinger said. "A perfect gentleman, an ironworker. We're all upset about it. It's been a tough week."