A man seriously injured in a skydiving accident in Central Saanich last year is desperate to recover his stolen GoPro, which had important footage of the incident.
Tyler Turner lost his leg after he made a hard landing at Central Saanich’s Woodwynn Farms in September. Turner, employed by Capital City Skydiving at the time, was taking video of a tandem jump when he hit the ground hard, leaving him unconscious with serious leg injuries.
Sidney/North Saanich RCMP were alerted after Turner’s backpack was stolen from the checked luggage carousel at the Swartz Bay ferry terminal on Jan. 12 about 8:45 p.m.
Two people, a man and a woman, exited a parked vehicle and entered the terminal. The woman purchased a ticket for the man, then went back to the vehicle. A different man in a dark hooded jacket grabbed the backpack from the luggage area, and went to the same vehicle, said Sidney/North Saanich RCMP spokesman Cpl. Chris Manseau.
The first man and woman do not appear to have been part of the theft of the backpack, but likely know the man seen grabbing the backpack. RCMP want to speak to them, as they are considered witnesses to the theft.
The backpack contained a GoPro with footage of the ill-fated skydive, prescription medication, sunglasses and a disability parking pass.
Turner is currently undergoing recovery treatment and therapy at GF Strong Hospital in Vancouver.
Turner, who is in his 30s, had joined Capital City Skydiving in the spring of 2017. At the time, company owner Bob Verret described Turner as an experienced skydiver with more than 300 jumps. WorkSafe B.C. and Central Saanich police were called in to investigate the accident.
Turner’s injury was the fourth serious skydiving incident involving Capital City Skydiving in 2017.
On April 8, a skydiver became trapped in a tree on Thomson Place in Central Saanich, prompting a search by emergency responders.
On June 4, two skydivers suffered broken bones after a rogue gust of wind caused their parachutes to collapse during the air-show component of the Oak Bay Tea Party. One man broke a femur and the other an ankle.
On June 17, two skydivers were blown off course and became tangled in a tree canopy near Mount Newton Cross Road. Central Saanich firefighters and an arborist with aerial rescue training worked for hours to rescue the pair, one of whom suffered a fractured limb.
After that incident, the District of Central Saanich asked Transport Canada to investigate.
Transport Canada regulates aircraft associated with parachuting but does not oversee parachuting or skydiving.
Anyone with information on the backpack theft, including the identity of the witnesses, is asked to contact the Sidney/North Saanich RCMP detachment, their local police department or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS).
