Local
Woodridge Man, 21, Killed in Paraglider Crash in Plainfield Farm Field
Giovanni Lopez, 21, of Woodridge died Saturday after a mid-flight emergency sent his paraglider into a Plainfield farm field near 127th Street and Ridge Road, police said. Bystanders and paramedics tried to save him before the Kendall County Coroner's Office pronounced him dead at the scene.
A 21-year-old Woodridge man died Saturday afternoon after a mid-flight emergency caused his paraglider to crash into a farm field in Plainfield, according to Plainfield police.
Officers were called around 3 p.m. to the area near 127th Street and Ridge Road after reports that a paraglider had gone down in the field. The pilot was later identified as Giovanni Lopez of Woodridge.
Witnesses at the scene attempted to help Lopez before paramedics arrived and took over life-saving efforts, police said. About 40 minutes after the initial call, the Kendall County Coroner's Office was notified of a possible fatality and sent investigators to the field. Coroner's officials pronounced Lopez dead upon arrival.
The coroner's office has not yet released Lopez's cause or manner of death. The crash remains under investigation by Plainfield police and the Kendall County Coroner's Office.
No further details were immediately available.
The death underscores the risks of paragliding, a form of unpowered flight in which pilots suspend beneath a fabric wing and rely on thermals and wind to stay aloft. Mid-flight emergencies can develop quickly and leave pilots with limited options for a safe landing, particularly over rural terrain where emergency responders may face delays reaching the scene.
Plainfield, a village spanning Will and Kendall counties, sits at the edge of the Chicago region's suburban sprawl, where open farmland remains common. The field near 127th and Ridge where the crash occurred is in that rural fringe.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact Plainfield police.