UPSON COUNTY, Ga. — Two families are heartbroken after a tragic skydiving accident left a recent high school graduate and her skydiving instructor dead.
The Upson County Sheriff told Channel 2 Action News deputies were called to a field on Rocky Bottom Road around 12:45 p.m. Sunday. That’s where they found the bodies of Nick Esposito, 35, of Warner Robins, and Jeanna Triplicata, 18, of Newnan.
Sheriff’s officials said Esposito was an experienced skydiver and was conducting a tandem jump with Triplicata.
“Upon exiting the aircraft, the primary parachute failed to open properly and went into a spin,” Sheriff Dan Kilgore said. “The emergency parachute did not deploy until extremely low altitude and did not fully open.”
Triplicata’s mother was there, and witnessed the jump. She wrote an emotional Facebook post describing what she saw.
“Since Jeanna turned 18 she had been wanting to skydive, Grandma decided she wanted to go with her and they booked a jump for today. They jumped and mom’s landing was perfect, she had a blast but Jeanna’s didn’t come down where she was supposed to and where we could see her.”
Never thought I would be making this type of post, EVER. Since Jeanna turned 18 she had been wanting to skydive,...
Posted by Bridgette Sands Triplicata on Sunday, July 12, 2020
A GoFundMe page has been set up for Triplicata family.
In the page, the teen’s parents described her as a “fearless, loving, and beautiful daughter.”
Triplicata recently graduated from Northgate High School and was about to begin her college life at the University of North Georgia specializing in education.
“She is in Heaven with her grandpa whom she loved and missed dearly.Obviously we are devastated beyond words and the next few days, weeks, months and well ever will be difficult,” Bridgette Sands Triplicata wrote in the Facebook post.
Authorities are still investigating the cause of the accident.
Cox Media Group
