2 elite skydivers die when chutes tangle near Lodi

Two members of an elite skydiving team were killed when their parachutes got entangled at 6,000 feet (1,830 meters) during a group jump in Northern California.

Two members of an elite skydiving team were killed when their parachutes got entangled at 6,000 feet (1,830 meters) during a group jump in Northern California.

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Bill Dause, owner of the Parachute Center near Lodi, says the men were part of the Red Line jumping team, an eight-member group who was practicing on Sunday for the US Parachute Association national skydiving championships next month.

Dause says the team was jumping in close formation when three parachutes became entangled. One diver was able to separate and safely deploy his chute, another died immediately on hitting the ground, and another died at a hospital. Authorities have not released their names.

Dause says the two skydivers had each jumped more than 4,000 times.