A U.S. Army veteran was recently injured in a significant paramotor accident. Footage recorded from the incident shows the veteran falling almost 100 feet to the ground.
When it comes to extreme sports, things can sometimes go wrong for even the most experienced. Anthony Vella, a paramotoring enthusiast, discovered this when a simple overlooked tension knot caused a disastrous accident mid-air, causing him to plunge nearly 100 feet to the ground and resulting in devastating injuries.
Vella shared a video of the accident on his YouTube channel. The video shows Vella in a hospital bed. The veteran can be seen wearing a neck brace and using supplemental oxygen.
Despite his obvious injuries, Vella explained that the accident was not the fault of the BDG Luna 3 paramotor he was testing at the time of the accident. He emphasized that those who share his enthusiasm for paramotoring should “double and triple check” their gear prior to taking off.
A video of Vella’s accident shows how the veteran attempted to instruct Siri to call 911 with his cell phone shortly after crashing. While he struggled to report the accident to emergency services, the Daily Caller reported that two good Samaritans contacted emergency services to notify them of the veteran’s location. Roughly 30 minutes after the crash, emergency services arrived at the scene and transported Vella to a hospital.
Vella’s wife, Leandra, explained in the YouTube video that Vella suffered a fractured neck, back, and pelvis, as well as a shattered arm. Despite the injuries, Vella’s wife noted that the veteran is determined to rehabilitate and return to creating content for his many followers.
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“We have felt the love and support from all of you and will never be able to articulate just how much it means to him, me and our family. Anthony is very excited to get back to his strong and active self. Please subscribe to follow his rehabilitation journey and his first flight back. Thank you again for your continued support,” Leandra posted in the description.
Vella previously credited the injuries he received while serving in the U.S. Army as the foundation of his love of flying.
“I got injured in Afghanistan back in 2011 and when I got out of the Army, there is obviously a lot of struggles that soldiers deal with,” Vella said. “It feels empowering for someone with a disability … to be able to separate yourselves from any sort of stressors you felt on the ground,” Vella said, according to KFox 14.
Vella has amassed a large following with his infectious enthusiasm and unbeatable spirit, which is apparent even in the video of the accident. As paramedics splinted his arm to prepare him for transportation, one of the paramedics reassured him, saying, “Considering you fell out of the sky, you’re doing pretty good.”
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