A young Boston software engineer died in a freak skydiving accident in Massachusetts over the weekend, authorities said.
Mani Chandra Teja Gaddam, 28, was violently dropped 30 feet by a sudden gust of wind after airdropping at Jumptown Skydiving in Orange, Massachusetts, around 4 p.m. on Sunday, the Northwestern District Attorney’s Office said.
Emergency services rushed Gaddam to Athol Hospital in the neighboring town, where he was pronounced dead, according to officials.
Gaddam had been awarded an A License from the United States Parachute Association at the time of his death, according to his family, which allows skydivers to jump without direct instructor supervision.
The young developer’s death has left the family “devastated.”
“Chandra was an exceptionally bright, kind, and hardworking young man with a passion for learning and embracing new challenges,” his family said in a GoFundMe for funeral expenses.
Jumptown Skydiving corroborated the fact that a “sudden and unpredictable weather event appears to have caused the accident” and said they’re cooperating with the authorities in the matter of Gaddam’s death.
“We are deeply saddened by the incident that occurred at our facility and extend our heartfelt condolences to the family, friends, and loved ones of the skydiver involved,” the skydiving center told WBZ-TV in a statement.
Gaddam had been employed at Fidelity Investments in Boston for a little over a year at the time he died, according to his LinkedIn profile.
The young software developer had studied in Hyderabad, India, before beginning graduate studies in the US.
He studied computer science at Northwestern University and received his master’s degree in December 2024, according to his profile.
His death is being investigated by local and state police, as well as the Federal Aviation Administration.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will determine the cause and manner of death.
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