Paramotor crashes in Cape Coral neighborhood

A paramotor crashed in a homeowner’s backyard during flight in Lee County after taking off from a filed near Southwest Florida International Airport.

Cape Coral Police Department responded to a paramotor crash near a home on Northwest 27th Ave. in Cape Coral Sunday.

Surveillance cameras captured the crash, as the pilot fell from the sky strapped to a rainbow-color parachute.

“When we got closer to the house, we could see that the paraglider was down in the field across the street,” neighbor Kelly Evans said.

Other neighbors nearby initially believed a plane had crashed.

Olive Greaves, Neighbor

“I heard a plane,” neighbor Olive Greaves said. “But I wasn’t in the position of where I could see it.”

Other neighbors witnessed the crash. They told WINK News the pilot crashed in an empty lot, hitting a tree before making landfall directly behind a neighbor’s home.

“It didn’t look like there was a lot of damage,” Evans said. “But we didn’t know what had happened.”

The Federal Aviation Administration responded to the crash and conducted an investigation. The FAA said the crash will be now be investigated as a traffic accident, since the paramotor was not registered with the administration.

CCPD is the lead agency conducting the investigation.

“It’s often that we see little small aircrafts or paragliders and things,” Evans said. “You know, we have great weather most of the year, so whether we’re going for a walk or laying out by the pool, you often hear something flying around overhead.