The family of a veteran Australian skydiver who recently died after suffering from a brain injury due to a rough skydive landing is fearing losing their home due to financial hardships.
According to the family, death due to skydiving was not covered under Rodger Goltz’s life insurance, meaning that the family cannot claim any money after Goltz’s death, which is pushing them into financial uncertainty.
The troubling family has started a GoFundMe fundraiser with a target of $200,000 AUD and has collected more than $29,000 so far.
Goltz, an IT technician by profession, was a seasoned skydiver who had completed almost 80 dives before the unfortunate jump in which wind currents forced him to land at the wrong angle. Despite having a perfectly working parachute, he ended up getting a severe impact on his brain at the time of landing.
His son, Kai, who was also skydiving alongside, saw a crash but did not initially realize that his father was the victim until he saw his shoe on the ground, which made him rush to the scene.
Goltz was immediately treated on the scene and later transported to a hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.
Paul Smith, Chief instructor of Skydive Oz, the diving center with which Goltz was diving, confirmed the smooth opening of the parachute, adding that the victim suffered a “heavy landing” that resulted in his unfortunate death.
Smith said they are taking every possible step to safeguard people who skydive with his company and that the accident has devastated the closely connected community of skydivers. He also thanked first aid responders for providing immediate aid to Goltz and then subsequently taking him to a Canberra hospital on a helicopter.
Australian national parachute governing body, the Australian Parachute Federation (APF), donated $3,000 AUD to the grieving family through a GoFundMe campaign and announced the accident investigation. Charl Rootman, the AFP training and safety manager, noted that the federation is collaborating with the police for the investigation and is reviewing all the possible scenarios and any factor that may have contributed in the unfortunate death,
Meanwhile, Goltz received appreciation for saving four lives by donating his different body organs to needy patients right before leaving the world. His wife, Kelly Goltz, recalled that she agreed with her husband about the possibility of organ donation, but they wanted their six children to take the final call on the issue.
Kelly stated that all six children also agreed, which helped Goltz bring joy to four families. The wife further added that listening to the families of the organ recipients gives her and all six children a bit of relief in grieving times.
