It was supposed to be a “fun adventure,” but a skydive ended in tragedy last week for a young woman described as a Canadian beauty queen and social media influencer.
Tanya Pardazi, 21, apparently opened her parachute too late during her descent on Aug. 27, CTV News reported.
It was the young woman’s first solo dive, according to the report.
Skydive Toronto in Innisfil, Ontario, said in a Monday statement that Pardazi “released a quickly-rotating main parachute at a low altitude without the time or altitude required for the reserve parachute to inflate.”
Pardazi was taken to a hospital, but was pronounced dead.
A philosophy student at the University of Toronto, Pardazi had a TikTok account with nearly 100,000 followers.
She had also previously participated in the Miss Canada beauty pageant, making it to the semifinals.
BREAKING: Tanya Pardazi, a 21-year-old #TikTok influencer and Miss Canada semi-finalist, has died in a fatal #skydiving accident. pic.twitter.com/kCSkH5O3Ed
— BNN Canada (@BNNCA) September 3, 2022
Forever part of our team and in our hearts, Tanya Pardazi was one in a million pic.twitter.com/roisnXWcjI
— UTSC Cheerleading (@UTSC_cheer) August 30, 2022
Pardazi had spoken about skydiving, among other things, in her most recent video posted to TikTok on Aug. 22.
“I talked to her recently. I couldn’t believe it,” her longtime friend Melody Ozgoli told Bradford Today. “I thought it was a joke. It has been a couple of days and I still can’t believe it.”
“She was adventurous and always trying new exciting stuff,” Ozgoli said. “Skydiving was supposed to be another fun adventure for her.”
Another friend, Kimia Sepanlou, called Pardazi “one of the bravest girls,” CTV reported.
“Whenever we saw her, we knew we were in for an adventure because she didn’t like letting herself, or the people closest to her, get bored,” she said. “Everyone who met her thought the world of her.”
