A maintenance worker sweeps up debris beside a message board sign that fell on a family killing a child and injuring the mother and two other children in the terminal at the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport in Birmingham, Ala., Friday, March 22, 2013. Credit: AP
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (TheBlaze/AP) — A sign at the Birmingham airport fell on a family Friday, killing a 10-year boy and injuring other family members.
Deputy Coroner Derrick Perryman said 10-year-old Luke Bresette was pronounced dead at Children’s of Alabama. Two other children were being treated there, and the mother, Heather Bresette, was taken to University Hospital, where spokeswoman Nicole Wyatt said she was in critical condition. The coroner’s office and the hospital did not disclose the family’s hometown.
Firefighters estimated the arrival-departure sign weighed 300 to 400 pounds.
Albert Osorio, 46, of Birmingham told al.com (http://bit.ly/XvWV7p ) that he was close by when the sign fell. He said a loud boom was followed by screams from the family and witnesses. Then he and five other passers-by lifted off the sign.
“The whole thing flipped down on those kids. It took all of us here to stand it up,” he said.
It was a really tough thing to have to witness, Osorio said. “It’s hard to describe,” he added.
People hold up a message board sign that fell on a family killing a child and injuring the mother and two other children in the terminal at the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport in Birmingham, Ala., Friday, March 22, 2013. Credit: AP
Fire trucks line up outside the terminal at the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport in Birmingham, Ala., where a message board sign fell on a family killing one child and injuring the mother and two other children Friday, March 22, 2013. Credit: AP
Airport spokeswoman Toni Herrera-Bast said officials aren’t sure how the sign fell. She said it happened about 1:30 p.m. Friday in a pre-security area of the airport. The airport continued operating while rescue workers tended to the family.
The airport completed the first phase of a more than $201 million modernization effort and opened newly renovated concourses last week.
Mayor William Bell issued a statement saying the city offered its full support to the Airport Authority in investigating the accident.
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Comments (91)
DaveInFla
Mar. 23, 2013 at 5:40am“Mayor William Bell issued a statement saying the city offered its full support to the Airport Authority in investigating the accident.” Really??? Sounds to me as if the Attny General is the one that needs to be doing the investigating. 200 million and they cant hang a sign correctly????!!!!! Follow the money trail.. my guess is that there is a good ole boy or two driving around in a brand new 4 wheel drive pickup with a 10 grand shotgun on his way to a $600 quail hunt with a few of his cronies….. you can bet on it.
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twolaneflash
Mar. 23, 2013 at 4:21pmThis is Birmingham, AL. That’s not Sonny and Bubba getting that airport contract. That contract winner is a fellow Democrat, driving a pimped-out Escalade on his way to Dreamland BBQ. Bankrupt city, ruined by incompetency and worse. Reminds me of years ago when the similarly-bent Atlanta airport authority paid 6-figures per for house painter’s drop cloths to hang over escalator walls, **** it was a black house painter. It’s racist to mention it, so I condemn myself in advance, **** why are we not surprised when black-run and occupied cities fail, repeatedly, everywhere, not just in America?
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DaveInFla
Mar. 23, 2013 at 5:36amAdd your comments
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Apple Bite
Mar. 23, 2013 at 1:51amIt could only be due to Union Labor. Building codes across the country are being ignored at random, if there are no anchor points for that sign, that family have better find themselves a very good lawyer, and sue those that’s responsible for putting that sign up there.
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tradcatholicgirl
Mar. 23, 2013 at 8:08amConsidering the medical bills and possible permanent injury to the mom, suing in this case would be appropriate.
Especially if it turns out this accident could have been prevented with proper, legal building code being enforced.
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missdagnytaggart
Mar. 23, 2013 at 1:00pmI’d sure be suing the living crap out of them.
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J Z
Mar. 23, 2013 at 6:06pmFrankly, I think building codes are too often the go-to discussion point when things like this happen… To me, it’s not about following building codes or not, it’s about people having pride in their work and doing the right thing.
I worked for a few contractors during college, and none of them ever would have let a 300-400 pound sign be unsecured. Hell, even IKEA provides wall anchors when they sell you a book shelf.
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redfish52
Mar. 24, 2013 at 8:58am@Apple…trust me when I say this because I’m a Construction Manager. An inspector would never had looked at the anchors. The sign was most probably already hung. All the inspector would have looked at just prior to hanging would have been the electrical outlet to power the sign. This accident is the fault of the contractor supervisor that was over the crew hanging the sign….period. And right now that boy is loosing a lot of sleep because he knows it.
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justlyso
Mar. 24, 2013 at 11:52amThey had 12 guys supervising and one illegal immigrant hanging the sign. All hail to union labor paid at federal contract rates.
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everydaywoman
Mar. 23, 2013 at 12:35amDear God, be with that poor family as this little boy comes to rest in your arms.
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dmerwin
Mar. 23, 2013 at 1:53amObviously, this is a direct consequence of the sequester.
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The Giver
Mar. 23, 2013 at 7:20pmBeautiful thought. Amen.
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OlefromMN
Mar. 22, 2013 at 11:31pmFrom looking at the top photo showing the sign on it’s face I have to ask if they thought double faced tape would be strong enough?
I see no anchor points nor a bottom sill to help carry the load.
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BehindBlueEyes
Mar. 23, 2013 at 8:38amBased of the pictures it appears the panel wasn’t secured to the wall. There are no visible areas where the wall board was damaged. My guess is it was sitting on the floor for support and pushed up against the wall.
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bigdaddyt46
Mar. 22, 2013 at 11:09pm@woodyee
thanks for trying to lighten the mood on this very tragic story. even old jokes still serve a purpose. you’re one of the handfull of posters i search out every story(like when you and mr. monk get into playful exchanges) especialy like when you go after the left wing feminazis on the board(now get back to the kitchen chop, chop LOL).
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TH777
Mar. 23, 2013 at 5:32pmYeah, I just love Woodyee and The-Monk also. I always search out their posts too.
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piper60
Mar. 22, 2013 at 11:01pmLousy construction and lousy materials. We in the Boston area have had a few panels fall off of the wall of a tunnel that was a part of “the big dig” project. Endangering traffic,etc.
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Bookster
Mar. 22, 2013 at 10:41pmAnother high quality construction installation performed by union labor.
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Carboy
Mar. 22, 2013 at 11:17pmWell that’s because the guy who was supposed to tightened the nuts was out sick that day and no one else was “qualified” to do it. When the guy finally came back to work he had 20 mandatory 15min breaks to catch up on, and by the time that was over they had to move on to a new section of construction…..it’s all very logical in how these things happen, so stop bashing the useless unions…worthless people need them to speak on their behalf since they can’t speak for themselves.
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Kiba
Mar. 22, 2013 at 11:30pmReally, she should sue the air port and the blood sucking greedy union that no-doubt built it. The guys that hung it probably just got back from a lunch break of beer, whisky and grass and told their foreman if he didn’t like it then go screw himself.
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SIXFRIGATES
Mar. 22, 2013 at 10:40pmClearly we need tighter arrival-departure sign control laws. This never would have happened if this sign was allowed to carry so many monitors in its magazine. They should only allow a single monitor in a arrival-departure sign…
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Cadcamtrainer
Mar. 22, 2013 at 11:35pmBan assault signs!!! Also have background check on all the workers every time they clock in.
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SidneyDave
Mar. 22, 2013 at 10:22pmAnother incident caused because of the sequester. When will them republicans learn?
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youngblood1
Mar. 22, 2013 at 10:20pmI wonder how long it will take for Harry Reid to blame this on Sequestration
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HI_Don
Mar. 22, 2013 at 10:03pmLook at the picture where the display is face down on the ground. I don’t see any indication that it was secured to the wall at all, like the airport just figured it weighs so much, we’ll just set it here. If it wasn’t secured to the wall – huge lawsuit.
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celestialfire
Mar. 23, 2013 at 8:05amhuge lawsuit, probably not so much since the city filed bankruptcy in 2010, maybe their new business partner can help out http://www.birminghampost.net/news/west-midlands-news/2010/10/26/birmingham-and-abu-dhabi-to-sign-agreement-deal-65233-27540820/
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celestialfire
Mar. 23, 2013 at 8:15amforgot to add..other sites are saying it appeared to be attached using liquid nail.
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HI_Don
Mar. 23, 2013 at 10:54pmB.S. on the liquid nail. 1) that isn’t sufficient and being in the electronics business I can’t imagine anyone doing that. 2) look at the back of the unit on the ground, there isn’t any indication of liquid nail – no pieces of the wall attached to the electronics, no pieces of the unit cabinet on the wall, no liquid nail in sight, and not a single broken wall tile or crack. That unit may have had sealant on the floor, but there is nothing holding it to the wall. By code you can’t put up a bookshelf around the public without attaching it to the wall or ceiling – an liquid nail is not sufficient nor would it pass any safety inspection. Fasteners – not glue. And in this case – no glue, no fasteners, just expectations. “I didn’t think it could fall, I hoped it wouldn’t fall, I can’t believe it fell.” are the best statements of truth you would get from the company that installed this unit.
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HI_Don
Mar. 23, 2013 at 11:00pmWell maybe they had just one dab of liquid nail in the upper right hand corner – like that was going to do the job. The installer is liable, no question. Even if the kid or his mom were climbing, yanking, pulling and kicking the display. they don’t bold down coke machines to prevent theft – they do so because people who have tried to shake and break the machines have died by being crushed by them. After they are dead, you can’t prove why they tipped the machine, only that it fell on them and crushed them so the owner becomes liable. Thus – code, law, and good practice dictates you secure these heavy objects.
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Coffeehead
Mar. 22, 2013 at 9:23pmI’m sure an investigation will reveal if the child had climbed up on the sign and was jumping on it.
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jlfonz
Mar. 22, 2013 at 9:21pmAirport? Designed and installed by union labor no doubt
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Bangstick
Mar. 22, 2013 at 10:01pmI have no doubt they will find nothing wrong and shift blame to the victims
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Realman30
Mar. 22, 2013 at 10:15pmIf not, the labor was done by Miguel and Enrique.
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just happy
Mar. 22, 2013 at 9:17pmjumping to conclusions and especially ones that degrade adds nothing to heal a hurting world. please at least lets focus on the family and kids. there are no facts even out yet
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Patriot Z
Mar. 22, 2013 at 9:09pm:0( how sad
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AvengerK
Mar. 22, 2013 at 8:44pmMy prayers for the child who is now with God and for the child’s family who have to live with this terrible loss.
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antitheism
Mar. 22, 2013 at 10:06pmAnd you know the child is with god how?
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Xanderson
Mar. 22, 2013 at 10:41pmIt’s called FAITH– look it up– Some of us don’t look forward to an everlasting Nothingness. Enjoy your future as worm food……..or much MUCH WORSE!
antitheism
Mar. 22, 2013 at 11:10pmxander
Well, for one thing, he could be in hell, however unlikely.
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The Giver
Mar. 23, 2013 at 7:43pmANTI- I believe the child is with God, not with small g gods (demons). He is with the Creator, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. You don’t have to believe in God. God believes in you.
Makes you wonder what else didn’t get tightened properly.
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notsurewhatshappeninghere
Mar. 25, 2013 at 4:16pmThat’s very sympathetic of you, but, with all due respect, if the child is now “with God”, why does he need your prayers? The family, yes, can most likely use all the help of any kind they can. But the child, (RIP), is with God, in Heaven. Supposedly, heaven is perfect and the boy should be happier than any human on Earth, right? It really sucks how he got there, but he’s there, right? Why does he need your prayers???
I’m just saying, you religious types need to seriously examine your logic when it comes to “faith”. If you’re going to preach it to other people, you really should try to make it seem so less…backwards all the time. There is a big reason for the term “BLIND” faith…
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jakartaman
Mar. 22, 2013 at 8:38pmGod Bless the family – my prayers are with them
People – we need to come together in love and respect for one another.
There is enough hate and evil in the world without adding to it!
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Xanderson
Mar. 22, 2013 at 9:40pmThank you for the perfectly stated sentiment!
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brother_ed
Mar. 22, 2013 at 10:11pm@JAKARTAMAN
It has been by observation that, though evil seems to have been on the rise, goodness has also.
Sides are being chosen.
There is still time, but many who figured they would wait until the 11th hour to repent end up dying at 10;30.
When the lights come on, the moths head towards it, while the cockroaches scurry away.
I, for one, hope to be found doing good when the master of the house comes home.
May God give this family an extra measure of His love during this difficult time,
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eat-more-bacon-USA
Mar. 22, 2013 at 8:30pmHorrible. Judging from the top photo, it doesn’t look like the sign was even attached to the wall – it appears to have been free-standing … faulty installation? Low-bidder union contract labor? Prayers for the tragic loss of this child and for his mother and all of those involved. This should never have happened.
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wilbstal
Mar. 22, 2013 at 8:30pmcheck and see what Lazy Union did the work, they were probably late for e Union benefit meeting
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Restored One
Mar. 22, 2013 at 9:06pmThey will blame it on the sequester. God Bless this family.
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CatB
Mar. 22, 2013 at 8:26pmYes .. my first thought also . you know it had to be some union thugs .. errrr workers … who didn’t put that sign up SECURELY
Condolences to the family .. and R.I.P. little Luke. So sad.
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americansfightingforcommonsense
Mar. 22, 2013 at 8:26pmMay GOD Bless this Family. This just awful to hear about, let alone witness it. I can not imagine. I have ten year old daughter right now and we are traveling as well. No words could explain their loss. Just sad. I hope the mother and children will be ok.
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Stelex
Mar. 22, 2013 at 8:18pmTragic stupid accident………very sad. Hope they find the cause. My thoughts for the family.
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hi
Mar. 22, 2013 at 8:16pmAsk Jesus into your heart ASAP. You never know when your time is up.
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Small World
Mar. 22, 2013 at 8:12pmNothing but bad news today.
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termyt
Mar. 22, 2013 at 8:25pmAin’t that the truth. Makes me kind’a wish for one of those “why are you telling me this” sotries right about now.
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woodyee
Mar. 22, 2013 at 9:36pmA small man had the window seat on a plane when a huge, mean-looking hulk plopped down beside him. After they were airborne, the little guy got airsick but was afraid to wake the now-sleeping giant beside him and there was no way he could climb over him to get to the bathroom. When the plane hit an air pocket, the poor little guy erupted, hurling all over the big guy’s chest. The big guy sniffed a few times, woke up, looked down, and saw vomit everywhere. The little guy beside him squeaked, “So? Now do you feel better?”
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woodyee
Mar. 22, 2013 at 9:40pmMy flight was being served by an obviously gay flight attendant, who seemed to put everyone in a good mood as he served us food and drinks. As the plane prepared to descend, he came swishing down the aisle and told us that “Captain Marvey has asked me to announce that he’ll be landing the big scary plane shortly, so lovely people, if you could just put your trays up, that would be super.”
On his trip back up the aisle, he noticed this well-dressed and rather Arabic looking woman hadn’t moved a muscle. “Perhaps you didn’t hear me over those big brute engines but I asked you to raise your trazy-poo, so the main man can pitty-pat us on the ground.”
She calmly turned her head and said, “In my country, I am called a Princess and I take orders from no one.”
To which (I swear) the flight attendant replied, without missing a beat, “Well, sweet-cheeks, in my country I’m called a Queen, so I outrank you. Tray-up, Beeotch.”
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