News Local/State

Champaign Funeral Director Dies In WWII Demonstration

 

Authorities say a skydiver from Illinois has been killed while taking part in a demonstration jump in Oklahoma to honor World War II paratroopers.

A photo of Jim Yost from his Facebook page.

Oklahoma medical examiner's office spokeswoman Amy Elliott says 69-year-old Jim Yost died Tuesday from blunt force injuries after his parachute malfunctioned.

Yost, a funeral director from Champaign, Illinois, was taking part in the World War II Airborne Demonstration Team's semi-annual jump school near Frederick, Oklahoma, when the accident occurred.
 
Tillman County Sheriff Bobby Whittington says his office and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating the death.
 
Members of the World War II Airborne Demonstration Team honor veterans by participating in jumps that are modeled after paratroopers during the war.

More from the Champaign News Gazette and the The Wall Street Journal