A Florida man experienced a brush with danger on Friday when his powered paraglider plummeted 500 feet into the ocean. Miraculously, the 52-year-old emerged from the ordeal unscathed, according to local authorities.
The harrowing incident unfolded just before noon, as the man was flying off the coast of Singer Island, near Riviera Beach. The sudden descent was captured on cellphone videos by onlookers who witnessed the dramatic scene.
Sarah Williamson, a lifeguard with Palm Beach County Ocean Rescue, described the tense moments leading up to the crash. She noticed the paraglider behaving erratically after encountering a gust of wind. “I just started running,” she recounted to WFLX-TV. “I radioed my partner, and we grabbed our rescue equipment and paddled out together.”
In a rapid response, lifeguards, along with concerned beachgoers, swam to the man’s aid as he splashed into the water. The swift actions of these individuals, combined with the man’s fortunate escape, ensured a happy ending to what could have been a tragic event.
Beachgoers witnessed the paraglider fall 500 feet into the ocean off the coast of Singer Island near Riviera Beach on Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (Riviera Beach Police Department)
The lifeguards and nearby beachgoers immediately swam out to help the man, police said.
People swam out to help the uninjured paraglider, and brought him and his craft to shore, police said. (Riviera Beach Police Department)
Williamson said a snorkeler dove underwater and helped free the man from a tangle of paraglider lines.
“(The snorkeler) was a godsend because we did not have a mask, and he was able to get underwater and free the man while we secured him,” she told the outlet.
The paraglider, from Pompano Beach, had lifted off from Ocean Cay Park in Jupiter and sailed south until the 500-foot fall into the water, police said. (Riviera Beach Police Department)
Police said the rescuers brought the 52-year-old paraglider and his craft to shore. He was not injured.
The paraglider, from Pompano Beach, had lifted off from Ocean Cay Park in Jupiter and sailed south until the 500-foot fall into the water.
The man’s identity has yet to be released to the public.
Williamson said she was “quite blown away” to learn how far the paraglider fell before making the unplanned splashdown.
“Five hundred feet is an incredible thing to survive,” she said.
