Skydiver Falls to His Death During Stunt Before Tennessee High School Football Game

Tragedy struck a Tennessee high school football game on Friday when a skydiver fell to his death during a stunt before players took the field.

The 55-year-old skydiver was taking part in a pregame ceremony at the annual Musket Bowl between David Crockett and Daniel Boone high schools when he was injured as he fell to the ground, according to NBC News and CBS affiliate WVLT-TV.

The skydiver, who was employed by the company Jump TN, was airlifted to a local hospital, where he died of his injuries, NBC News reported.

The victim's identity has not been released.

"This was definitely a very unimaginable accident," Washington County School District Superintendent Jerry Boyd told WVLT.

WJHL

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Friday's incident occurred around 6:30 p.m., about a half hour before the rivalry football game was scheduled to begin, Boyd said.

Tyler Smith, a sophomore at Daniel Boone who witnessed the incident, told WJHL-TV that the accident occurred "out of the blue."

"Everybody was shocked [and] surprised and they didn't know what to do," said Smith, who captured the incident on camera.

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In a statement, Boyd said the community is "saddened by the tragic incident" and offered their "deepest sympathies" to the victim's loved ones, according reports.

"We ask that everyone keep the family in their thoughts and prayers as they deal with the loss of a beloved husband, father, and grandfather," Boyd added.

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Angela Alley, a spokesperson with Jump TN, said the victim had jumped more than 1,500 times and opened his parachute without issue during Friday's stunt, according to WVLT. Witnesses did not report seeing anything unusual about the jump, she added.

"The entire skydiving community is saddened by the sudden loss of a wonderful member of their community," Alley said.

The Washington County School District and Jump TN did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's requests for comment.

A moment of silence was held for the skydiver before Friday's game was played, according to WJHL.

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Mental health professionals were made available at both schools on Monday to support students, Boyd indicated in his statement.

"We are also deeply concerned for the well-being of all in attendance at the football game that witnessed this terrible accident," he said, according to NBC News.

Speaking with WJHL, Boyd said it is unclear if skydivers will continue to perform at games in the future: "At this point, I don't know."