China authorities investigating paraglider who was sucked into the clouds
The moment was captured on camera, showing his face and clothes covered in frost.
The video was distributed by Chinese state-run broadcaster CCTV and picked up internationally by distributers. (Image: CCTV)
Chinese authorities are investigating an incident in which a paraglider was sucked into the clouds and carried more than 8,500m above sea level.
He survived the chilling ordeal but authorities are looking into potential regulatory violations, Chinese media outlet Global Times reported on Wednesday (May 28).
The man, known as Liu Ge, was paragliding in the Qilian Mountain region of Northwest China's Qinghai and Gansu provinces on Saturday when he was caught in a “cloud suck” - a phenomenon where paragliders experience a significant lift.
The moment was captured on camera, showing his face and clothes covered in frost. He remained conscious throughout the video while controlling the parachute.
Liu was not wearing an oxygen mask and was seen to suffer from extensive frostbite.
He managed to control the parachute and landed safely in what local media reports are calling a miraculous survival.
“I just kept communicating over the radio the entire time," he told local media.
An experienced paraglider surnamed Ou told local media that participants typically prepare cold-weather gear as temperatures at 2,000m are already frigid. At 8,000m, temperatures drop to around -40 degrees Celsius with critically low oxygen levels.
While there are global cases of cloud suction incidents reaching 6,000 to 7,000m, few people survive such extreme altitudes, Ou said.
“This is truly miraculous. His mental resilience was extraordinary,” Ou added.
Although Liu holds a valid paragliding licence, he allegedly failed to file the necessary flight plan for the activity, according to local reports.
