A 21-year-old influencer and budding beauty queen has tragically died in a freak skydiving accident during her first solo jump.
Tanya Pardazi, from Toronto, Canada, who had nearly 100,000 followers on her TikTok page, reportedly died while skydiving in the town of Innisfil in the Canadian province of Ontario at around 5.40pm on 27 August.
The social media star was fatally injured after jumping out of a plane that was operated by Skydive Toronto, according to local media.
It is believed she reportedly opened her parachute too late during her first solo skydive.
The TikToker was rushed to a nearby hospital where she was pronounced dead on arrival.
Tanya, who was studying philosophy at the University of Toronto, last uploaded a video on 22 August when she spoke about Tetris and skydiving.
The comments section has been filled with tributes from followers and loved ones.
Her friends said she had previously taken part in the Miss Canada beauty pageant and had made it to the semi-finals.
The victim’s friend, Melody Ozgoli, told local news site Barrie Today: “One of her favourite topics to talk about was meaning of life and the curiosity of the after-life.
“I talked to her recently. I couldn't believe it. I thought it was a joke. It has been a couple of days and I still can't believe it.”
Melody, who knew the victim for over 10 years after meeting in primary school, added: “She was adventurous and always trying new exciting stuff. Skydiving was supposed to be another fun adventure for her.”
She also called her late friend a “gift to the world”.
Another friend, Kimia Sepanlou, called her “one of the bravest girls” she knew, telling Toronto CTV News: “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.”
Skydive Toronto said in a press statement that Tanya was a "recent addition" to the skydiving community and had “released a quickly rotating main parachute at a low altitude without the time/altitude required for the reserve parachute to inflate”.
The company added: “The team at Skydive Toronto Inc. has been profoundly affected by the accident as they have refined their student training program for over 50 years.”
The police are investigating the influencer’s untimely passing.
