bfl-419

BFL#: 419 (22nd of the year)
Name: Alex Kean
Date: 16th Dec 2021
Nationality: United Kingdom
Location: Skeffington, Harborough, United Kingdom
Object Type: Antenna
COD: Unknown at this time
Clothes / Suit: Slick
Gear / Parachute: Unknown
Age: 45
Skydive Experience: 900+ skydives and 8 years in sport
BASE Jumps: 200+ base jumps and 6 years in sport
WS BASE Experience: None
Years/Seasons in Base: 5 Season - Started June 2016
Time of day: (21:00) 09:00pm
Other factors: Possible Darkness, Fatigue or Muddy Boots
Exit Altitude: 143 ft
Conditions: Night time, good visibility, object was dry, not raining and wasn't particularly cold
Wind on exit: Very low

Description: There were 3 of us jumping (including Alex) and Alex’s wife Sian came with, like she has done on many of Alex’s previous jumps. We were originally planning to jump another object but decided on Skeffington (~200ft free stander) after a slight change to the winds (Alex’s suggestion). It was a planned night jump and weather was good.
We all arrived slightly later than planned and didn’t really discuss the jump that much other than that Alex was going to do a lower SL jump and the other 2 jumpers were going to go to the top (one SL and one handheld). We had a quick look at the LZ to the East of the object and put down 2 glow sticks.

We started to climb over the gate into the compound and note that Alex struggled to get over and ended up climbing over at a different point.
When climbing the ladder it is worth noting that the last jumper climbing made a comment about the ladder being muddy from the others’ boots.
Alex stopped at each platform and was using a laser to measure the height - so that he could determine where he would jump from. The other 2 jumpers continued to the top as planned. One of the jumpers recalls hearing Alex say ‘this one is 143ft, I’m going to go from here’. Alex was standing on a platform that was on the South side of the object, we could see this from the red light on his head torch.
The other two jumpers had kitted up and were in the process of tying off the SL for one of them. It was at this point that the object wobbled and one of them said ‘oh, there goes alex’. Immediately after, one of the other jumpers and his wife Sian, recall him shouting something (possibly ‘oh fuck!’). This was followed by a loud noise.
Alex’s wife Sian shouted for help, we responded asking if he was ok, to which she replied ‘no he’s unconscious, I’m calling an ambulance’.
We knew that we needed to get down quickly so we chose to jump. The HH jumper gave the other jumper a PCA to save time from finishing tying off the SL.
Alex’s body was laid to rest at the bottom of the fence after clearly impacting the roof of a small building and the fence (due to visible damage). he had made little forward movement suggesting the canopy had not inflated at all. He was fully kitted up with everything out, his canopy, bridle and PC were draped over the fence suggesting that he impacted prior to line stretch/canopy inflation. His wife Sian also recalls him having something out prior to impact.
Our initial thoughts were that Alex had died instantly from subterminal impact. We did the best we could and thank the emergency service for arriving promptly and their efforts to try and save him.

We have since returned to the object and note the following:
- There is no visible damage to the object where Alex was jumping from
- There was no anchor point or break cord left on the railings
- We did not find any anchor point or break cord on the ground

We are not sure if the police found any break cord or anchor point at the scene or on Alex’s person. If we find out that they did, we will update this.
We believe that Alex either slipped and fell from the object before (or during) tying off his SL, or, his SL failed. There are a number of factors that could have contributed to either of these scenarios.

If he slipped and fell:
- Did he climb over before tying his SL and was that his intention?
Did he want his SL to be closer to his pins and would this have made it difficult to climb over once tied off?
- Were his muddy boots a factor?
- Did he throw his PC in attempt to save his life? Was it still stowed or was it in his hand?
- Did he have break cord or anchor point in his hand and dropped it as he fell?
- Did fatigue, strength or the darkness factor in?

If his SL failed:
- Did his anchor point fail?
- Did he tie off directly to the steel angle instead of using an anchor point?
- Did he use one or two pieces of break cord?
- Did he tie off to the centre point of his bridle or at the PC or both? (did static vs dynamic load play a part?). We have not had chance to inspect his gear yet but don’t recall seeing an overhand knot on the mid point of his bridle at the time. One of the jumpers who has seen Alex tie a SL before believes he usually followed the Apex method.
Was the strength of the break cord compromised?
Did the knot fail?

We think it is unlikely we will ever truly know what happened, but if any more information becomes available from the police/coroner we will share it and update this report.

Alex was a keen supporter of the East Anglian Air Ambulance, his wife Sian has set up a donation page for anybody that would like to make a donation.https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/alex-kean...


Kyle Skoyles & Niall Power

Extreme sportsman dies after jumping from a communications mast in the north of Harborough district | Harborough Mail

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