Notre Dame and the state of Indiana have settled on a $42,000 fine for six violations in the death of student videographer Declan Sullivan. Notre Dame was originally fined $77,500 in Sullivan’s death for “knowingly putting its employees in unsafe conditions.”
On October 27, 2010, my job became the most talked about job in collegiate athletics when Sullivan’s hydraulic lift fell in a 53 mph wind gust on a windy day in South Bend. The incident hit close to home for myself and my coworkers, especially since our former head coach, Brian Kelly, was now leading practice at Notre Dame.
Questions came in from my friends and family. “Did that ever happen to you?” “Have you ever been up in winds?” And my parents were bombarded by coworkers and friends saying, “All I could think about was your son.”
Notre Dame said in a statement reported by the Associated Press that it, “appreciates the professionalism that (Indiana Occupational Health and Safety Administration) officials have demonstrated throughout this process and is pleased to have reached agreement with them on the safety orders.”
The IOSHA report did not identify one person in particular who was responsible for putting students in the lifts on that day. IOSHA reports normally do not place blame on any one.
However, in April, the University issued a report that stated, “Ultimately, because staff never saw winds in excess of 35 mph, the lifts were not grounded. Nonetheless, where any person has a subjective concern for safety, protocols should be strengthened to help ensure that such concerns are addressed, even where objective safety procedures (such as the 35 mph procedure here) are not triggered.”
Also, “Kelly did not think the wind was as severe as Tuesday, nor as severe as the heavy winds
he frequently encountered at Central Michigan, Grand Valley State, Cincinnati, or earlier
practice days at Notre Dame.”
I’m not sure we’ll ever know exactly what happened on that day, but it seems that Notre Dame will try everything they can to make sure this never happens again.
“A spokesman for Sullivan’s parents said the family was satisfied with the settlement, particularly the nationwide safety campaign,” in the AP report. “There can be no better way to remember Declan than to help others avoid future tragedies,” Sullivan's uncle, Mike Miley, wrote by e-mail to the AP. Miley and Notre Dame both said the amount of money Notre Dame was contributing to the memorial was a private matter.”
Is $42,000 enough? Not in my opinion. But it seems that the state and the school are happy with the outcome, which is sad.
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Got any opinions or questions? I’d love to hear them. Leave a comment.
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