CHICAGO -- A Fort Bragg soldier who served overseas died Sunday from injuries suffered in a midair collision with another jumper during a stunt at the Chicago Air & Water Show.
32-year-old Sergeant First Class Corey Hood died at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago, said Mario Johnson, a Cook County medical examiner's investigator. The Army said the team was doing a mass formation Saturday and while they were trying to do a break-away, Hood collided with a Navy skydiver and was knocked unconscious. The wind carried him four blocks away.
Eyewitnesses saw the soldier come in very low and crash into a building.
Bystanders say he fell about 30 stories. They stayed with him until paramedics arrived several minutes later. Hood was rushed to the hospital and underwent a procedure to reduce swelling in his head. Hood was a member of the Golden Knights Black Demonstration Team. He is originally from Ohio and has been a soldier for more 14 years. He served five tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. He received two Bronze Stars, two Meritorious Service Medical, the Master Parachutist Badge, Pathfinder, Air Assault, and Combat Action Badges.
Hood had logged more than 200 free fall jumps and 75 military static line jumps during his career, according to his Army biography. The Army Golden Knights and Navy Leap Frogs parachute teams were performing what is known as a "bomb burst" Saturday when the collision occurred, Golden Knights spokeswoman Donna Dixon said. During the stunt, parachutists fall with red smoke trailing from packs and then separate, creating a colorful visual in the sky. Dixon said Hood collided with a member of the Navy's precision skydiving team. The U.S. Army Golden Knights skydiver critically injured in Saturday'smid-air collision during the Chicago Air and Water Show has died. The Army Golden Knights and Navy Leap Frogs parachute teams were performing what is known as a "bomb burst" Saturday when the collision occurred, Golden Knights spokeswoman Donna Dixon said. During the stunt, parachutists fall with red smoke trailing from packs and then separate, creating a colorful visual in the sky. Dixon said Hood collided with a member of the Navy's precision skydiving team. "Hood was knocked unconscious which resulted in an uncontrolled offsite landing," she said in a statement.
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