Two men in a motor-powered paraglider crashed into the Willamette River in Benton County Saturday morning, killing the 51-year-old passenger.
Fast-acting fishermen rescued the pilot, a 56-year-old man from Eugene, the Benton County Sheriff’s Office said Sunday.
The men took off from Irish Bend Park south of Corvallis and flew north along the river. They were heading back to the park when they crashed around 7 a.m. near Peoria, the sheriff’s office said.
The 51-year-old was found dead underwater when officials arrived.
The men were flying in a two-seat Fenix AirTrap Paramotor paraglider, the sheriff’s office said.
Investigators don’t believe the pilot was impaired, the sheriff’s office said, but officials are still assessing the cause of the crash.
The sheriff’s office asks anyone with information on the crash to contact Detective Kim Lovik at 541-766-6818.
– Austin De Dios; adedios@oregonian.com; @austindedios; 503-319-9744