Student from Long Grove killed in tower fall

A University of Notre Dame student from Long Grove died Wednesday afternoon when a film tower he was on toppled over in high winds, according to the university.

Declan Sullivan, a 20-year-old junior, was filming Notre Dame football practice from a hydraulic scissor lift when the tower collapsed at 4:50 p.m. Wednesday, the university said.

“No words can convey the shock and grief we all are experiencing,” university president the Rev. John Jenkins said in a statement issued to students early Thursday morning. “Declan was a well-liked, bright and enthusiastic film and marketing student and a valued member of the Notre Dame family. His death is a tremendous loss that will be felt very deeply and we share in your grief during this incredibly difficult time.”

University officials have scheduled a news conference for 1 p.m. today to further discuss the incident. A special Mass of Remembrance will be held at 10 p.m. at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart on the university campus.

The accident happened at the LaBar Practice Complex where Sullivan was working for the university's athletic department on their film crew, according to the university.

Less than an hour before his death, Sullivan sent two messages on Twitter and Facebook from atop the tower, which stands up to 50 feet above ground.

In one message, timestamped 3:22 p.m., Sullivan wrote, “Gust of wind up to 60 mph well today will be fun at work... I guess I've lived long enough :-/.”

Later, striking a more serious tone, he tweeted, “This is terrifying.”

The National Weather Service reported wind speeds of 33 mph with gusts reaching 51 mph at the South Bend Regional Airport at 4:54 p.m., just four minutes after the accident.

The incident is under investigation by the Indiana Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

“We investigate any workplace accident that involves a death,” said Marc Lotter, the agency's communications director. “If there are any workplace violations found, we will issue a safety order and impose fines as necessary.”

Lotter said there is no timeline for when investigation will be complete, and any fines, if found necessary, would be determined by the nature of the violations.

United Rentals provided the equipment to Notre Dame, but it is not the manufacturer, according to the South Bend Tribune. HHS Hire, a company that deals in similar lifts, specifically states that it should never be used in wind speeds greater than 25 mph.

St. Joesph County Deputy Coroner Chuck Hurley said the preliminary cause of death appears to be blunt force trauma to the head, but added an autopsy scheduled for 1 p.m. today should reveal more information.

Sullivan, he said, was pronounced dead in the emergency room of Memorial Hospital of South Bend shortly after the accident.

Sullivan was a 2008 graduate of Carmel Catholic High School in Mundelein.

Family members contacted said they were devastated by Sullivan's death and asked for privacy.

After the accident, Notre Dame football players were on the field for about 25 minutes before leaving the field quietly, about 15 minutes before the scheduled end of practice, the South Bend Tribune reported.

Tuesday, for the first time this season, head coach Brian Kelly had his team practice inside the university's Loftus Center because of extreme weather conditions.

Kelly issued a statement Wednesday expressing condolences to Sullivan's family and friends.

“Declan was a diligent student worker in our video department and had a tremendous personality and great sense of humor,” Kelly said. “He brightened the days for all that had the privilege to work with him, and the Notre Dame football family will dearly miss him.”

Sullivan was a 2008 graduate of Carmel Catholic High School in Mundelein.

Family members contacted said they were devastated by Sullivan's death and asked for privacy.

Carmel Catholic High School spokeswoman described Sullivan as a gifted student who was “loved by students and faculty alike.”

Staff writers Lee Filas and Charles Keeshan and the South Bend Tribune contributed to this story.