YouTuber Anthony Vella is fortunate to be alive after a terrifying paramotor crash left him stranded with severe injuries in the Texas desert for nearly an hour.
Although he survived, his body is now shattered beyond belief.
Vella was test-flying his new BGD Luna 3 paramotor — which he stated is the fastest paraglider he’s ever flown — just outside of Austin, at the Enchanted Rock State Park.
He posted the video to YouTube. (Warning, the video does contain graphic images and language that may be disturbing for some readers.)
From his hospital bed, the married father of four shared the harrowing footage of his crash.
In the video he is in a hospital bed with a neck brace, broken right arm, and a nasal cannula, and he is hooked up to monitors. He broke his neck, back, and pelvis and shattered his right arm.
It’s miraculous he survived this fall, which was the equivalent of a weighted drop out of the sky.
“Viewer discretion is strongly advised,” Vella said from his hospital bed before showing the crash footage. “I know it would be very painful for some people to watch.”
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Vella took viewers step by step as he loaded the paramotor onto his back, started the motor and began his short-lived journey.
As the paramotor climbed to 85 feet and reached a speed of 48 MPH, it suddenly collapsed, sending Vella hurtling to the ground.
WARNING: The following posts contain video and language that may be disturbing for some readers.
Crazy footage captures content creator Anthony Vella crashing to the ground as his paraglider flips over while traveling at nearly 50 mph.
Vella sustained a fractured neck, back, and pelvis, along with a shattered right arm, but remarkably survived the traumatic ordeal.
Vella… pic.twitter.com/n2cwhUOYwZ
— Morbid Knowledge (@Morbidful) April 28, 2024
⚠️YouTuber Anthony Vella breaks his neck and back after falling 85 feet from a motorized paraglider in Texas. pic.twitter.com/KbOjWl6t94
— Truthseeker (@Xx17965797N) April 28, 2024
While waiting for first responders, a good Samaritan arrived on the scene to help.
“Oh f***, my arm is totally snapped,” Vella said, informing emergency services of his condition.
After 911 pinpointed his location and dispatched responders, Vella called his wife to break the news.
“The glider collapsed, and my arm is snapped,” he told her. “I’m going to be fine, my love, don’t worry.”
The video then shows first responders arriving on the scene, splinting Vella’s arm and reassuring him he would be OK.
“I can see your arm is obviously deformed,” one of the paramedics told him.
A firefighter later added, “Hey man, considering you fell out of the sky, you’re doing petty good.”
Leandra Vella, Vella’s wife, arrived just as paramedics were preparing to transport him to the hospital.
“Is it just your arm?” she asked while kneeling beside him and weeping. Vella responded, “Yeah.”
Despite the incident, Vella clarified in the video that the BGD Luna 3 was not responsible for the incident, explaining that a “small tension knot” he hadn’t noticed caused the accident.
He further explained, “When you are fully accelerated using the trims and fully accelerated on the speed bar, if you were to apply any sort of break input to a glider that is fully accelerated, it will result in a big collapse. The tension knot was akin to applying breaks.”
A GoFundMe fundraiser, created by his friend Clint Chamales, offered an update on Vella’s condition: “Anthony had all 4 surgeries this week and everything went well. Thank you again for the prayers and support.”
As of Wednesday morning, the GoFundMe has raised $32,120 of its $50,000 goal.
According to TMZ, Leandra Vella wrote on YouTube thanking Anthony’s followers for their support: “We have felt the love and support from all of you and will never be able to articulate just how much it means to him, me, and our family. Anthony is very excited to get back to his strong and active self.”
Apparently, the incident did not deter Vella who said from his hospital bed, “I will be back out there.”
