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Post by longsuffering on Jan 19, 2020 15:13:14 GMT -5
Simply amazing young woman.
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Post by timholycross on Jan 19, 2020 18:10:40 GMT -5
Here's an update about one of the girls.
"Anne Comcowich of Hopkinton is one of four members of the Holy Cross women’s rowing team who is still in the hospital after last week’s fatal crash.
Comcowich underwent surgery Saturday for hip and other injuries, according to her pastor.
Though Holy Cross has released the identities of its injured school members, the hospital does not release data on individual patients. But information on some of those hurt came to light Saturday, as members of several communities on the East Coast rallied behind the families of those students, including the daughter of a Connecticut mayor and a student whose parents own a Wareham eatery.
Grace Rett of Uxbridge, a 20-year-old world record holder in indoor rowing, was killed in the Jan. 15 Vero Beach, Florida crash. Her father, Chris, dropped the puck before a Holy Cross women’s hockey game Saturday.
The Rev. James B. Flynn, of St. Matthew Parish of Southborough, said Comcowich’s mother told him Saturday that her surgery went well.
Flynn said he understood recovery could be a “long struggle” and that Comcowich may require additional surgeries, but said he believed the sophomore would be OK.
“She is a great athlete, and a strong kid,” Flynn said of Comcowich, whose mother, Amy, serves as the parish’s religious education director, and whose father, Gregory, works for the FBI.
Both Comcowich parents were Holy Cross athletes, as Gregory rowed in 1992 and Amy was a member of the women’s basketball team that appeared in the NCAA Second Round in 1991.
“We just love the family, and they’re very active here,” Flynn said, noting that “Annie” was baptized in the church and is active in its youth ministry.
The parish in Southborough, which said mass for Comcowich Saturday, is one of many organizations in several communities on the east coast rallying in the wake of the crash, which took place during a training trip."
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wstruz71
Climbing Mt. St. James
Posts: 82
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Post by wstruz71 on Jan 21, 2020 7:39:06 GMT -5
Here an update on Maggie O'Leary that was on the Channel 8 New Haven web site this morning:
WATERBURY, Conn. (WTNH) — The daughter of Waterbury Mayor Neil O’Leary will return home following a deadly crash in Florida.
Maggie O’Leary was discharged from the hospital on Monday after surviving that crash with members of her college rowing team. She and her teammates from Holy Cross were riding in the team van when it collided with a truck last Wednesday.
20-year-old Grace Rett of Massachusetts was killed.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Jan 21, 2020 9:29:45 GMT -5
Another update, this from the Southcoasttoday
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Post by HCFC45 on Jan 21, 2020 11:58:23 GMT -5
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Jan 21, 2020 14:57:37 GMT -5
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Post by hchoops on Jan 21, 2020 16:15:55 GMT -5
Thanks for posting, PP
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Post by HCFC45 on Jan 22, 2020 16:44:55 GMT -5
Was asked to help out at the funeral this morning as an usher.... Very moving service. The church was filled to capacity - pews, aisles, an overflow area adjacent to the sanctuary. The sister, Brianne, gave the eulogy which detailed Grace's life as a daughter, sister and student. Grace's mother sang solo the Communion Meditation at the end - Come to Jesus. The men and women crew teams came in together, many of whom were in tears. The Holy Cross Chapel Choir sang beautifully. Many more in attendance including Holy Cross students, staff, Marianapolis Prep students and staff, Our Lady of the Valley students and staff and many, many others. Many priests and deacons also, including Fr. Boroughs. Fr. Nick Desimone celebrated and gave a well thought out sermon. From WCVB channel 5 in Boston: www.wcvb.com/article/hundreds-gather-to-honor-life-of-grace-rett-holy-cross-rower-killed-in-florida-crash-1579689075/30621397Here are the pages that comprised the program (minus the music sheets):
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Post by hchoops on Jan 22, 2020 17:07:44 GMT -5
Thank you. I am sure it was very trying for all, especially her family and close friends.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Jan 22, 2020 18:51:39 GMT -5
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Post by HC13 on Jan 23, 2020 6:53:16 GMT -5
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Post by hchoops on Jan 23, 2020 8:06:40 GMT -5
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Post by hchoops on Jan 23, 2020 8:10:24 GMT -5
Wow very powerful photos Thank you for posting
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Post by HC13 on Jan 24, 2020 7:31:23 GMT -5
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Post by timholycross on Jan 24, 2020 8:19:02 GMT -5
Boston Globe article (behind pay wall): "Moments after last week’s horrific crash, as paramedics extracted injured members of the Holy Cross rowing team from inside a crushed passenger van, the coach who drove the vehicle allegedly blurted out a plea. “Please let me have had a green light,” Coach Patrick Diggins said, according to a police report released Thursday. “Did I have a green arrow? God please let me have had a green arrow.” Witnesses later told police that Diggins had turned left on a green light, failed to yield to oncoming traffic, and sparked a tragic early morning crash in Vero Beach, Florida, that injured 13 people and killed Holy Cross rower Grace Rett. Diggins, 55, made the remark spontaneously that morning in the presence of a police officer, as medics rushed him and other survivors into helicopters and ambulances bound for local hospitals, the report says. The report makes clear that the traffic light at the intersection included both a green signal and a green arrow signal. Witnesses told police that Diggins turned left on green, but without the arrow that would have given him the clear right of way. Florida authorities continued to investigate the crash Thursday, and are awaiting the results of an autopsy and additional interviews with witnesses, said Officer Darrell Rivers, spokesman for the Vero Beach Police Department. Police have yet to interview Diggins. “Right now, we’re investigating it only as a traffic accident,” Rivers said. Police will eventually turn their findings over to prosecutors for consideration. Diggins’s Florida-based attorney, Christopher G. Lyons, said Thursday via e-mail that his client remains “grief stricken about the tragic accident." Lyons added that Diggins "has expressed his deep condolences to the Rett family, to the injured members of the team, and to all of the other family members affected by this tragedy. All of them are in his continuing prayers. Coach Diggins is fully cooperating with the ongoing police investigation in Florida.” Holy Cross issued a statement Thursday evening, saying "Our community has suffered a tremendous loss and our focus remains on our students, their families and the women’s rowing team who are grieving for their teammate. We have received the preliminary accident report, and will continue to cooperate with Florida authorities who are conducting the investigation.'' Twenty-two members of the Holy Cross crew team and its coaches were traveling in a two-van convoy on Jan. 15, heading to practice at a nearby training camp. Diggins was driving and Rett, 20, rode shotgun in the lead vehicle. She wore a seat belt, officials believe. Around 7:30 a.m., the van turned left on a green light, cutting across the four-lane highway. An oncoming red Dodge pickup truck collided head-on with the front passenger section of the 12-passenger Ford Transit van. The driver of the truck told police that Diggins appeared to be “looking down and not looking at the roadway as he pulled out" into the path of pickup truck. A witness in another vehicle nearby corroborated that account, saying the van’s actions left no way for the truck driver to avoid a collision. Stephanie Ricker, a Holy Cross assistant coach who was driving the second team van behind Diggins, told police the light was green when Diggins turned into the roadway, according to the report. She said she "did not observe a green arrow for them to make a left and proceed on to the bridge.” Diggins was one of eight taken to Lawnwood Regional Medical Center in Fort Pierce following the crash, with the three most seriously injured flown by helicopter. Six of those patients, including Diggins, have since been released, hospital spokeswoman Tiffany Woods said Thursday. Of the remaining two, both students, one remains in treatment at the hospital and was recently upgraded to serious condition. The team members not injured in the crash were flown back to Massachusetts last week. Hill, the school’s spokesman, has declined to say whether Diggins has returned to work. Following the crash, Hill said Holy Cross would conduct an internal review into the circumstances of the crash, but did not provide additional details. On Monday, Hannah Strom, a Holy Cross sophomore from Marion who was also injured in the crash, was airlifted from Lawnwood to Mass General in Boston “to continue her recovery,” the college said.
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Post by rgs318 on Jan 24, 2020 8:26:40 GMT -5
I hope that the accident remains just that with nothing new added to the burdens that all now face already. Such an incident will remain with all who are connected to it (including loved ones) for the rest of their lives. They are all in my prayers.
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Post by lou on Jan 24, 2020 8:34:13 GMT -5
If placing blame, blame the DOT...I was driving to the Fort Lauderdale airport yesterday. Similar intersection, they are everywhere down there, but red and green left arrows only, no solid green lights in the left turn lane
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Jan 24, 2020 9:46:10 GMT -5
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Post by timholycross on Jan 24, 2020 11:27:10 GMT -5
I didn't like the "looking down and not at the roadway" alleged comment by the truck driver on a number of levels; some pointing the finger at Coach Diggins, some at the truck driver.
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Post by sader1970 on Jan 24, 2020 12:12:54 GMT -5
If a physical green arrow is there (and the DOT didn't screw up and have a solid green on coming when there is a green arrow on), it becomes a "question of lights" not a right of way issue. In other words, both drivers can claim they had the green and the other ran a red light.
If there is no green left turn arrow, the van driver (the coach) will be in the wrong as making a left turn means you must yield to oncoming traffic whether there is a sign to that effect or not.
The only possible mitigating factor is the concept of "last clear chance" which is probably not the case here. Essentially that means just because someone makes a mistake (i.e. making a left turn in front of you), it doesn't give you the right to just continue without trying to take evasive action. If you can avoid the accident, you are obligated to do so regardless of any traffic laws.
The bottom line is that this does not look good for our rowing coach/driver and it will be interesting as he was an agent of Holy Cross which will have "deep pockets" for any potential lawsuits by the injured and deceased.
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Post by Tom on Jan 24, 2020 12:27:18 GMT -5
I didn't like the "looking down and not at the roadway" alleged comment by the truck driver on a number of levels; some pointing the finger at Coach Diggins, some at the truck driver. It's a traumatic event which can make memories a little sketchy. This is a divided road. Even in the left lane the van is mostly turned and the impact was on the passenger side. Is it reasonable to think the other driver got this kind of a good look at Coach Diggins? I'm not sure I take the looking down statement at face value. Coach might have been. Potentially checking a GPS at a turn in unfamiliar territory. But I think it more likely that the person in the passenger seat would have been handling GPS duty as a navigator.
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woorat
Climbing Mt. St. James
Posts: 66
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Post by woorat on Jan 24, 2020 12:44:41 GMT -5
Too late for HC, but the simple solution is to make the left turn a blinking yellow meaning that the on coming traffic has the right of way or a green arrow when the traffic turning has the right of way. Like I said last week, being down in Vero Beach a few week ago, the traffic lights can be confusing at first.. I am sure that it happened very fast. The other driver could not have seen Patrick's head down!
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Jan 24, 2020 13:04:38 GMT -5
I don't think very many drivers would be looking down in the midst of making a sharp 90 degree turn onto another highway, particularly when crossing three lanes of northbound traffic. So I give little/no credence to the other driver's comment. It was hard to see from the photos whether the other driver braked at all, and one couldn't tell what lane he was in . I think the natural reaction if a vehicle was suddenly crossing in front of you from your left to right, would be to turn toward the rear of the crossing vehicle.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Jan 24, 2020 13:21:28 GMT -5
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Post by Tom on Jan 24, 2020 13:23:00 GMT -5
Too late for HC, but the simple solution is to make the left turn a blinking yellow meaning that the on coming traffic has the right of way or a green arrow when the traffic turning has the right of way. Like I said last week, being down in Vero Beach a few week ago, the traffic lights can be confusing at first.. I am sure that it happened very fast. The other driver could not have seen Patrick's head down! Blinking yellows are a fairly new thing beginning to pop up in New England
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