Montreal man dies in parasailing mishap

A Montreal man crashed to his death while parasailing in the middle of the city on the weekend.

The man, 45, died after falling nearly 30 metres from the sky around 11 a.m. ET Sunday.

Witnesses said the man had been strapped to a small parachute-like sail with its line anchored to a car parked in a lot at the corner of William Tremblay and Molson streets in Montreal's Rosemont district.

"We turned the corner, and we saw this guy [parasailing], and we thought it was weird that he would do that," said Sébastien Gouger, who lives in the area.

Gouger and his friends watched the man practise some manoeuvres when a strong wind gust snapped his cord.

"He continued floating straight ahead, but the sail drifted the other way, and he fell to the ground," Gouger said.

Gouger said he ran with his friends to see if the man was all right, but he was unconscious. He was declared dead at a local hospital.

There do not appear to be any bylaws preventing parasailing in the city, but Montreal police warned people to use common sense.

"It is something that can be dangerous," spokeswoman Anie Lemieux said.

The coroner's office is considering whether to investigate the man's death, Lemieux said.

Police have not revealed the man's identity.