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BASE jumper plummets to his death after wingsuit failure in Utah canyon

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Cite

Goodman, R. (2026, September 29). BASE jumper plummets to his death after wingsuit failure in Utah canyon. Global News. https://globalnews.ca/news/12076080/base-jumper-dies-wingsuit-failure-utah/

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Global News · collected 2026-09-29 · by Rachel Goodman

Quick Summary

A 27-year-old firefighter named Gabe Reilly died in a wingsuit malfunction during a BASE jump near Leetham’s Hollow in Millville Canyon, Utah, over the weekend. He fell about 700 feet and was pronounced dead at the scene by search and rescue crews. This incident is one of 15 BASE jumping fatalities reported in 2026 globally, with a total of 548 deaths since official records began in 1981.
Written by AI on 2026-09-29, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

A 27-year-old BASE jumper identified as Gabe Reilly, a firefighter with the Salt Lake City Fire Department, died on Sunday after his wingsuit failed during a jump from a 700-foot perch near Leetham’s Hollow in Millville Canyon, Cache County, Utah. Search and rescue teams were dispatched at 9:10 a.m. and declared Reilly dead upon arrival. According to Cache County Sheriff's Office Deputy Doyle Peck, "something went wrong" with the wingsuit, resulting in insufficient lift and high-speed impact with the ground.

Reilly was part of an experienced group of around 8-10 BASE jumpers at a location known for steep cliffs similar to those in the Grand Canyon. The area is approximately 45 miles north of Ogden and popular among extreme sports enthusiasts. Since 1981, there have been 541 reported BASE jumping deaths, highlighting the inherent risks associated with the sport.

Written for “BASE Jumper Death Utah” on 2026-11-01, grounded in this article and the 4 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 BASE Jumper Death Utah
Sports · 5 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 7% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
New York Post
Hedges 1 of 12 claims Outlet record 66/100
NBC News
Hedges 3 of 12 claims Outlet record 60/100
The Guardian
Hedges 2 of 13 claims Outlet record 66/100
New York Post
Hedges 1 of 10 claims Outlet record 66/100
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
15
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
7%
1 of 15 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
63/100
Global News's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
5
Sports
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-29 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Global News · 2630 article(s) · 11 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 11 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Rachel Goodman
47 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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Also by Rachel Goodman
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 47 articles by Rachel Goodman →

Topics

Cache County Facebook Salt Lake City Utah the Associated Press

Subjects

Gabe PERSON · 3× Utah GPE · 3× Cache County GPE · 2× the Associated Press ORG · 2× Facebook ORG · 1× Gabe Reilly PERSON · 1× NBC News ORG · 1× SLCFD ORG · 1× Salt Lake City GPE · 1× the Salt Lake City Fire Department ORG · 1×

Narrative

Get daily National news NBC News said he jumped from about 700 feet and described the area where Reilly was found as having “walls and cliffs not unlike the Grand Canyon’s.” Cache County Chief Sheriff’s Deputy Doyle Peck told the U.S. outlet that search and rescue crews were called to Leetham’s Hollow at 9:10 a.m. Sunday, where he was declared dead at the scene. “On today’s jump, something went wrong and he did not have enough lift with his wingsuit,” Peck said.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-29
🔮 Gabe’s commitment to the department, his fellow firefighters, and the community will not be forgotten,” the statement continued.
2026-09-29 · Global News
BASE jumper plummets to his death after wingsuit failure in Utah canyon · assertive framing

Claims (15 extracted, 1 hedged)

A BASE jumper died in Utah over the weekend after his wingsuit malfunctioned, Salt Lake City authorities confirmed Monday. asserted
authorities → die → weekend
Gabe Reilly, 27, was a firefighter with the city’s fire department, his colleagues wrote in a Facebook statement. “Gabe proudly served the Salt Lake City Fire Department for the past four years, following in the footsteps of his father, who retired from SLCFD in 2024,” it reads. asserted
it → write → 2024
“Gabe was known for his infectious smile, kind-heartedness, and his free-spirited nature. asserted
Gabe → know → smile
Gabe’s commitment to the department, his fellow firefighters, and the community will not be forgotten,” the statement continued. asserted
statement → forget → department
The accident happened near Leetham’s Hollow in Millville Canyon, in northern Utah, a popular BASE jumping location known for its mountainous landscapes, local media outlets reported. asserted
outlets → happen → landscapes
Get daily National news NBC News said he jumped from about 700 feet and described the area where Reilly was found as having “walls and cliffs not unlike the Grand Canyon’s.” Cache County Chief Sheriff’s Deputy Doyle Peck told the U.S. outlet that search and rescue crews were called to Leetham’s Hollow at 9:10 a.m. Sunday, where he was declared dead at the scene. “On today’s jump, something went wrong and he did not have enough lift with his wingsuit,” Peck said. asserted
Peck → get → wingsuit
“He impacted the ground at a high rate of speed, resulting in his death.” asserted
He → impact → death
Global News reached out to the Cache County Sheriff’s Department for comment but did not receive a response. asserted
News → reach → response
This is not the first BASE jumping fatality in Utah to occur this year. asserted
This → occur → Utah
In June, Andy Lewis, an extreme athlete and daredevil best known for performing onstage with Madonna at the 2012 Super Bowl, and another individual died in a tandem jump, the Associated Press reported at the time of the incident. asserted
Press → know → incident
Grand County Sheriff Jamison Wiggins confirmed the other person who was killed was Danny Joe Kregle, a 68-year-old father and grandfather who was described by a family member as an accomplished businessman. asserted
who → confirm → businessman
Lewis owned BASE Jump Moab, a business that offered tandem jumps to inexperienced thrill-seekers who would be harnessed to a guide wearing the parachute. asserted
who → own → parachute
Promotional videos on the company’s social media show people stepping off the edges of cliffs and skyscrapers and briefly freefalling before their parachutes open. asserted
parachutes → show → cliffs
BASE jumping is a dangerous sport that involves parachuting to the ground after jumping from a tall fixed object such as a building, a bridge or a desert cliff overlooking a deep canyon. asserted
that → involve → canyon
There have been 15 BASE jumping fatalities in 2026, according to the BASE fatality list, and 548 deaths since official tracking records began in 1981. uncertain
records → accord → 1981
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