Kuala Lumpur - An Australian woman fell to her death in Malaysia when her parachute failed to open after she jumped off a tower to practice for a parachuting event, organisers said on Wednesday.
Kylie Tanti Marion, 42, was performing her third jump on Tuesday while practising at the Alor Setar Tower in northern Malaysia - the second-highest tower in the country - when she plunged to her death, tower management said in a statement.
“I saw her struggling to pull open the parachute but her attempt failed,” said witness Mohamad Zaidi Zainol Abidin, who was standing nearby the scene.
Marion, an experienced skydiver, died instantly, according to officials from Telekom Malaysia, which owns the 165-metre-high Alor Setar Tower. She was among 24 foreign and local participants preparing for the KL Tower International Jump on October 7, a BASE-jumping event that began in 2000. BASE stands for the places such jumpers usually leap from: buildings, antennae, spans and earth.
The KL tower is the tallest in Malaysia and ranks 18th in the world.
Management said it had taken all safety measures and would help in any police investigation.
Police couldn't be immediately reached for comment. - AP