Eric Hill Dies: Bachelorette Contestant Killed In Paragliding Accident

Eric Hill was set to appear on the upcoming season of the Bachelorette, but instead the 32-year-old is dead after a paragliding accident in Utah.

Hill was paragliding on Sunday afternoon and was between 15 and 20 feet in the air when he crashed into the mountainside, fire department officials noted. Reports said Hill experienced turbulence that was strong enough to push him into the mountain.

The accident left him with significant trauma, and after being airlifted to a hospital he was in a coma and listed in critical condition.

On Wednesday, Eric Hill died of his injuries.

“Eric shared his final journey with us this morning as all his immediate family were able to be at his side when he passed away. Thank you to all of your love and support and prayers and fasting. It was amazing to be with so many of his friends and family yesterday in the hospital who came to express their love for Eric,” Hill’s sister Karen Tracy wrote on her Facebook page Wednesday.

It was unclear how far Eric Hill advanced on the upcoming season of The Bachelorette, which features Bachelor contestant Andi Dorfman. A report from blogger Reality Steve, who has successfully predicted the outcome of nearly every season of the reality dating show, said that Hill was selected for the first one-on-one date of the season, generally an indication of a strong connection.

Eric’s sister Tracy had kept fans abreast of his condition this week, posting messages on Facebook that painted the situation as dire.

“The family is all gathering to visit Eric in the hospital. His trauma is quite severe,” she wrote on Facebook.

“Thank you all for your continuing prayers and support. This could have happened to Eric Jonathan Hill anywhere in the world, and I am so grateful that it happened where he is surrounded by loving friends and family. Whatever happens, I know he and all of us feel your love. I know our Heavenly Father is listening to your prayers, and I have faith that this is in His loving hands.”

The death of Bachelorette contestant Eric Hill is not the first tragedy to strike the series. Last year, former Bachelor contestant Gia Allemand died two days after a suicide attempt left her in a coma.