McClanahan family sues over fireman’s death

The family of Timothy McClanahan, Lewes firefighter who died following a fall in a July 2016 training exercise, is suing the company that made the safety harness McClanahan wore the day he died.

According to the lawsuit filed July 2 in Delaware Superior Court, McClanahan’s family is seeking damages for negligence, breach of warranty, liability, wrongful death and pain and suffering by McClanahan’s children.

Arthur Krawitz, attorney for the family, said, the suit was filed because McClanahan’s death could have been prevented if he was wearing Federal Aviation Administration-approved equipment.

McClanahan, 46, died July 11, 2016 during a training exercise after falling 100 feet to the ground from a Bell 429 helicopter. He was a Lewes volunteer firefighter and a member of the Delaware Air Rescue Team, a rescue unit that assists Delaware State Police’s aviation unit.

The day of his death, McClanahan, along with team member Michael MacCoy and Delaware State Police officers Gregory Cartwright and helicopter pilot Kevin Crossland, were training at Delaware Coastal Airport in Georgetown. During the exercise, McClanahan stepped onto helicopter skids to facilitate being lowered to the ground. According to court documents, when McClanahan stepped out, he fell to the ground, suffering a broken neck and fatal injuries.

McClanahan’s safety harness system was designed, recommended and sold by Priority 1 Air Rescue Operations, based in Mesa, Ariz. Priority 1’s hoist tether was built with a Kong Tango connector, which featured an aluminum carabiner with a double gate. The family’s suit says the carbiner could be inadvertently opened during normal use in a helicopter. A Kong connector is manufactured in Italy and is intended as a safety clip for use in mountaineering, rescue work and work at height. 

The purpose of the tether and connector was to provide a restraint, so the operator could lean out onto the helicopter skid without falling.

The family suit says Priority 1 briefed operators on use of the system, and McClanahan properly secured himself as the company instructed. After he fell, the suit says, it was found that the connector was unlocked from the safety harness.

“As the defendants knew or reasonably should have known, movement by crew members within the helicopter could and would result in the release or opening of its nonlocking connector and the disengaging of their tether from their safety harness,” the suit said.

The family says McClanahan would not have been aware his tether was disengaged. They say the system was unsafe, but Priority 1 represented itself as safety experts, and the state trusted the company’s expertise.

Mark Torres, executive vice president of Priority 1 Air Rescue said while the company is not providing formal comment, the matter was reviewed by the National Transportation Safety Board, which found that the equipment worked as intended and it was likely McClanahan was not fastened to the helicopter. The company has until Wednesday, Aug. 15 to file a response. Krawitz said he expects a trial schedule to be issued within the next 30 days.