A skydiving instructor caught in a short-lived whirlwind was killed Friday after crashing into a Southern California field.
A student who was performing a tandem skydive with the instructor was hospitalized with serious injuries after the reported accident in Perris, a city in Riverside County, authorities confirmed.
The Riverside County Sheriff’s Office, which responded to the scene, identified the deceased skydiving instructor as Devrey LaRiccia, 28, of Menifee.
According to sheriff’s officials, around 2:30 p.m., officers were dispatched to Skydive Perris, one of the “largest, most modern and most respected drop zones in the world,” according to the company’s website.
The company is located in an area known for skydiving, about 70 miles southeast of Los Angeles and 80 miles north of San Diego.
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Two parachuting victims taken to hospital
At the scene, officers located two people seriously injured in an open field, according to a statement from the sheriff’s office.
Both victims were taken to hospital where, according to the coroner’s report, LaRiccia died.
The skydiving student has not been identified by authorities and her condition was not immediately known Wednesday.
USA TODAY has reached out to the sheriff’s office and Skydive Perris.
Sheriff’s officials said no foul play was suspected in the case and notified the Federal Aviation Administration, which they said is leading the investigation.
USA TODAY has contacted the FAA.
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“His last jump of the day”
According to her partner of five years, Freddie Chase, LaRiccia worked for Skydive Perris and went to work “happier than ever” the day she died.
Chase, who lives in Perris and met LaRiccia while skydiving, told USA TODAY that LaRiccia and his student were performing a tandem skydive on his final jump of the day when they collided with a “dust devil” that sent them crashing to the ground.
“There was no malfunction, there was no aircraft incident, she was turning her canopy on final to land safely on the grass, as she has done hundreds of times,” said Chase, 32. “She noticed what we call in the industry ‘dust devils,’ little tornadoes that are dangerous in the sport.”
What are dust devils?
Dust devils are “a common wind phenomenon” that occurs worldwide, according to the National Weather Service.
The fast-rotating winds are filled with dust created by intense surface heating and are typically smaller and less intense than a tornado, the NWS said. They average about 500 to 1,000 feet in height and typically last only a few minutes before dissipating.
“Uncontrolled rotation towards the ground”
About 40 feet out, Chase said, she managed to avoid one dust devil, “but caught a second one.”
“The dust devils that fly over the grass become invisible because you can’t see any dust in the direction they’re going,” Chase explained. “That sent his sail into an uncontrollable spin all the way to the ground.”
Chase said his partner was “unconscious but breathing” after the fall before being taken to hospital.
“She died when I got to the hospital,” Chase said.
“You were too perfect for this world.”
In tribute to her on Instagram, Chase wrote: “Devrey Jane Lariccia… my life or death, my everything… You were too perfect for this world.”
“Having to say goodbye to you right now will forever be the hardest thing I will ever do in my life.”
A fundraiser created by the family to help cover LaRiccia’s funeral costs had raised nearly $60,000 as of Wednesday.
“Our family has been overwhelmed with words of love and support from those who knew Devrey and those who met her in passing,” Marcelline LaRiccia of Maine, who created the fundraiser, wrote on the page. “We are doing our best with each passing moment. Blue skies and flying high.”
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Contact her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund.
