PERRIS – Keith Colwick, 51, of Fallbrook died Friday morning in a parachute accident in Riverside County. He was an experienced sky diver.

Colwick was jumping from 3,500 feet when it appeared that his first parachute malfunctioned, said Dan Chenfeld, general manager of Perris Valley Skydiving, who was present at the time. Chenfeld said it appeared Colwick tried to control the malfunctioning parachute rather than cutting it away and deploying his backup parachute.

“He made a bad decision in this case,” Chenfeld said.

Colwick was known to be a competent sky diver who had participated in the sport for about a decade.

“He's not an extreme jumper,” Chenfeld said. “He's got three kids and he's a responsible businessman and parent.”

Colwick was injured about 9:20 a.m. when his equipment malfunctioned. He died about 90 minutes later at Riverside County Regional Medical Center in Moreno Valley, a coroner's spokeswoman said.

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