Search area narrowed for missing Florida skydiver

Police have narrowed the search area for missing skydiver Kurt Ruppert based on information from his cell phone as well as the flight pattern of the airplane he jumped from, the King County Sheriff’s office said Saturday.

Ruppert, 29, of Palatka, Fla., was last seen Thursday afternoon after he made a jump from a helicopter at 6,500 feet near Mount Si in North Bend.

A search Thursday and Friday failed to turn up any trace of Ruppert, who jumped wearing a wingsuit, which has a webbed design featuring fabric or material between the legs and under the arm that allows a diver to glide horizontally during the fall.

According to the Sheriff’s Office, Ruppert was taking turns jumping from a chartered helicopter with two other people. Sgt. Cindi West of the King County Sheriff’s Office said the pilot did not see Ruppert’s jump nor did his companions, who were waiting in the landing zone.

None was able to say whether Ruppert deployed his parachute, West said.

Comments | More in General news, The Blotter | Topics: King County Sheriff's Office, Kurt Ruppert, missing skydiver

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