Notre Dame student dies filming football practice in high winds

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=5736851

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Indiana's workplace safety agency is investigating the death of a Notre Dame student after the tower from which he was filming football practice fell over.

Declan Sullivan of Long Grove, Ill., died at a hospital on Wednesday after the scissor lift the 20-year-old student was in toppled amid winds gusting over 50 mph.

It was not clear who made the lift. But one manufacturer of scissor lifts, HHS Wire, says on its website that the device should not be used in winds above 25 mph.

The university did not return calls seeking comment on Wednesday, and it was not clear who authorized Sullivan to go up in the scissor lift to videotape Wednesday's practice.

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Maybe I'm just overly jaded on big-time college sports, but this is f*cking outrageous. The responsibility for this falls squarely on the head coach's shoulders. Who amongst you think he'll actually get canned (as he well f*cking ought to be)?

God is really not on Notre Dame's side this football season.

I dunno, It's not something I would have thought about. The football coach thinks about football, not whether the scissor lift is rated to withstand the weather of practice. If anything, this falls into the lap of the AD.

Even still, every college football team in the country films practices/games with a scissor lift (I played ****** D-III and even we did), and I've never heard of this happening before.

If someone forced him to stay up there he should be thrown in jail. I can't understand why the kid wouldn't try to get down.

Oh, Douglas, restrain your outrage, PLZ.

He's a coach, not a meteorologist, nor is he licensed to operate those sorts of heavy machinery. And since he comes from a football background, I'm sure common sense is one of those things he left on the field back when he played high school ball. Cut him some slack. If he's having a winning season, then this is just one of them sports tragedies that happens like players dying during conditioning drills. Freak accident, obviously: who knew it was windy that day?

Hmmm, let's see what other BS excuses I can cook up.

...Oh, yeah. Act of God.

(FWIW, yes, it's outrageous. I doubt the coach will get fired, though, but someone ought to)

Nothing is going right for ND football.

..

Lawsuit time.

Too bad it didn't fall on their stupid leprechaun mascot. And no, Kelly won't get fired.

Unless the coach wouldn't lower the platform after the kid demanded it, I say this is the kids fault and not the coach's. You've got to be pretty ******* stupid to stand on top of a rickety platform 2 stories up in 50 mph wind.

To some extent I agree, but these types of testosterone charged environments are not the places where one's safety concerns take precedent over the potential stigma of being considered a *****. In most cases, these types of student assistants are treated like complete **** and fired or ridiculed for the most benign expressions of skepticism or resistance to authority. If he didn't say anything, it's obviously not because he wasn't concerned. It's because he didn't think it would be acceptable.

And this is not much different from a player refraining from sayings he's too fatigued to keep running wind sprints during 103 degree August two-a-days before he collapses and dies.

creepy phrophetic status updates are creepy

Sullivan wrote his first message at 3.22pm saying: 'Gust of wind up to 60mph well today will be fun at work... I guess I've lived long enough.'

The second message, sent at 4.06pm, read: 'Holy f*** holy f*** this is terrifying.'

The tower toppled to the ground with Sullivan inside at around 4.50pm.

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who schedules practice in a day where 60 mph winds are expected?

Originally Posted by embowafa

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creepy phrophetic status updates are creepy

shrug
darwin award winner

Originally Posted by StephenHero

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To some extent I agree, but these types of testosterone charged environments are not the places where one's safety concerns take precedent over the potential stigma of being considered a *****. In most cases, these types of student assistants are treated like complete **** and fired or ridiculed for the most benign expressions of skepticism or resistance to authority. If he didn't say anything, it's obviously not because he wasn't concerned. It's because he didn't think it would be acceptable.
I agree. I was in the northern part of the state yesterday, and the winds were blowing really hard. I bet the kid was knocked about quite a bit before it fell.