Sandpoint man suffers spinal injuries after skydiving accident

A Sandpoint man is asking the community for help after breaking several vertebrae in his back during a skydive on Memorial Day.

Local man Tim Smith was participating in a flag jump in Washington state on May 27 to honor those who gave their lives for the United States when he suffered multiple broken backs in an accident.

“Basically, I lost my grip on my left gag just before landing after hand-flying a 15-pound sandbag and flag in tow that had come loose from its container,” Smith said in a social media update. “That was my mistake. Reattaching the weight to me probably would have been a better outcome.”

Smith said he ultimately wanted to complete the flag jump in honor of the fallen rather than prioritizing his safety, and that’s where things went wrong.

“On the way to final approach, the left toggle slipped out of my hand and my thumb couldn’t support the extra weight of the flag and I couldn’t catch my left toggle on the short final approach,” he said. “The result was an asymmetric landing on a no-wind day, which was tough.”

Although the landing itself didn’t look disastrous, Smith said he hit the ground with too much speed. After catching his breath, Smith was able to walk off the field with some assistance and initially thought he was fine. In the end, however, it turned out he had a burst fracture of his 12th thoracic vertebra, a spinal hematoma, a sprained thumb and several bone fragments that caused problems in other parts of his spine.

After undergoing surgery, Smith has already returned home and said he was surprised he was able to return home so quickly.

“It could have been worse, but … it could have been better,” he said. “It’s going to be really tough, but I’m going to make a full recovery.”

Smith said he plans to release a video in the near future detailing the accident “for safety reasons and to learn from it.”

“I still have a lot of time to heal and reflect on the dysfunction,” he said. “It’s going to be a long road to healing, but we’re already on that road.”

A GoFundMe page has been set up to help Smith pay his medical bills as he undergoes spinal surgeries and spends time recovering.

In a June 4 update from Kristine Rae, the fundraiser’s organizer, she said Smith has spent his time at home seeing friends and family and working on his mobility.

“He can now get in and out of bed by himself — which was actually harder than walking — and walk to the mailbox, slowly increasing the distance each day,” she said. “Showering is difficult because he can’t wear his braces, but he’s managed it a few times.”

To donate to Smith’s GoFundMe page, visit bit.ly/3RmDxOb.