2 women killed in Lake Elsinore skydiving incident identified; victims were from Illinois and South Dakota

The two women were reportedly training to break a California skydiving record.

LAKE ELSINORE, Calif. (KABC) -- The two skydivers who were killed when they collided midair above Lake Elsinore last week have been identified.

The Riverside County Sheriff's Office identified the two women as 56-year-old Georgia Jean of South Dakota and 29-year-old Levi Pimentel of Illinois.

Friday's accident happened when their parachutes became entangled as the two prepared to land during an organized skydiving event.

ORIGINAL REPORT: 2 skydivers dead after colliding midair in Lake Elsinore, officials say

Riverside County sheriff's deputies responded to the 20000 block of Cereal Street around 11:47 a.m. for a call about an air emergency.

Deputies found the two women on the ground, receiving medical aid. They both suffered major injuries and were transported to a local hospital, where they were later pronounced dead.

The company Skydive Elsinore said the freefall portion of the skydive and opening of the parachutes were normal, but as they were preparing to land, the two skydivers collided approximately 150 feet above the ground.

"The collision caused their parachutes to become entangled, and both sustained critical injuries when they reached the ground," Skydive Elsinore said in a statement.

The company said there is no indication of any equipment malfunction.

"Both were experienced, licensed skydivers visiting from out of town to take part in an organized skydiving event at Skydive Elsinore," the statement said.

The Los Angeles Times reports that the women had been training to set a new state skydiving record when the deadly crash happened. They hoped to set a California record for the largest formation in the upright orientation performed by women.

Another professional skydiver from Arizona, who was also part of the group training for the record, told the Times that they jumped from a plane and held each other's hands on Friday morning. She said the first minute of the free fall was uneventful before the two women got too close to each other, causing their opened parachutes to tangle.

Jean wrote in a biography that she had completed more than 1,700 jumps.