--- description: A 73-year-old BASE jumper died leaping off of a bridge in Twins Falls Idaho and into Snake River after his parachute deployed too late title: 73-Year-Old BASE Jumper Dies After Parachute Opens Too Late image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt554b9832b0953ec7/6987ef0f0b72e305016e1f8c/perrine-bridge.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Newsfeed](/tag/time-section-newsfeed/) ## Newsfeed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # 73-Year-Old BASE Jumper Dies After His Parachute Opens Too Late  by [Olivia B. Waxman](/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer May 9, 2015 1:22 PM CUT  A Twin Falls County Sheriff Department Search and Rescue boat heads up the Snake River on April 10, 2007, in Twin Falls, Idaho. A Twin Falls County Sheriff Department Search and Rescue boat heads up the Snake River on April 10, 2007, in Twin Falls, Idaho.Ashley Smith—AP  by [Olivia B. Waxman](/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer May 9, 2015 1:22 PM CUT A 73-year-old BASE jumper died Thursday while leaping off a bridge in Twins Falls, Idaho, into Snake River after his parachute deployed too late, local authorities said. The Twins Falls County Sheriff’s Office identified the thrill-seeker as James E. Hickey of Claremont, Calif. Hickey had done about 1,000 BASE jumps—which involve parachuting from fixed structures like bridges, buildings and cliffs—since taking up the sport about 10 years ago, Tom Aiello, a friend and local BASE jumping instructor, told [Reuters](http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/05/08/us-usa-accident-idaho-idUSKBN0NT27520150508 "undefined"). Authorities say the fatality at Perrine Bridge was the second in the area so far this year, after 32-year-old Bryan Turner of Vancouver, British Columbia, died in March following a similar stunt. Turner’s death was the first BASE jumping fatality at the bridge site in four years, [CNN](http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/09/us/base-jumper-killed-in-idaho/index.html "undefined") and [Reuters](http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/05/08/us-usa-accident-idaho-idUSKBN0NT27520150508 "undefined") report. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3852724/base-jumper-died-twin-falls-idaho-bridge/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3852724/base-jumper-died-twin-falls-idaho-bridge/"},"headline":"73-Year-Old BASE Jumper Dies After His Parachute Opens Too Late","datePublished":"2015-05-09T13:22:58.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:19:36.311Z","description":"He had done about 1,000 BASE jumps in the past decade","url":"https://time.com/3852724/base-jumper-died-twin-falls-idaho-bridge/","keywords":["Newsfeed","U.S."],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt554b9832b0953ec7/6987ef0f0b72e305016e1f8c/perrine-bridge.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Olivia B. Waxman","jobTitle":"Staff Writer","url":"https://time.com/author/olivia-b-waxman/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt554b9832b0953ec7/6987ef0f0b72e305016e1f8c/perrine-bridge.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"A Twin Falls County Sheriff Department Search and Rescue boat heads up the Snake River on April 10, 2007, in Twin Falls, Idaho.","caption":"A Twin Falls County Sheriff Department Search and Rescue boat heads up the Snake River on April 10, 2007, in Twin Falls, Idaho.","creditText":"Ashley Smith—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3852724/base-jumper-died-twin-falls-idaho-bridge/","name":"73-Year-Old BASE Jumper Dies After His Parachute Opens Too Late"}}]}] ```