Reply With QuoteMy condolences to his family, students and colleagues
How horrible
Lancaster teacher dies in boating accident near Small Boat Harbor
By Mark Sommer and Deidre Williams | Published 11:33 a.m. May 13, 2018 | Updated 6 minutes ago
The body of 43-year-old Eric Przykuta, president of the Lancaster Central Teachers Association, was recovered from the waters of the Small Boat Harbor around 9 a.m. Sunday after a boating accident, the U.S. Coast Guard said.
Three men were on a fishing boat in the harbor when the boat crashed into the breakwall late Saturday. Przykuta was the only one of the three not wearing a life vest, according to the Coast Guard. The other two men were rescued and treated.
Przykuta was president of the teachers association for the last 10 years and had taught seventh-grade science at Lancaster Middle School for nearly 20 years, said Michael J. Vallely, superintendent of the Lancaster Central School District, in a written statement. Przykuta also coached boys modified lacrosse and was given the Leadership Award from the New York State United Teachers.
"Eric and I had a great, great relationship that had a mutual foundation of respect and trust. I will miss him greatly," Vallely's statement continued.
"He was a highly respected teacher at Lancaster Middle School, regarded as an advocate for children, both in the classroom and on the athletic field," said Lancaster Middle School Principal Peter Kruszynski in the same statement. "As president of the LCTA, and on a personal level, he was respected by peers and administrators alike."
Grief counselors and other emotional support staff will be on hand in the schools on Monday, Vallely said.
Przykuta is survived by his wife, Lori and children Landyn and Emersyn; and his parents, Dennis and Diana. His brother, Aaron, also is a teacher at Lancaster Middle School, and his father is a retired Lancaster teacher.
A memorial service will be held at 9:30 a.m. Saturday in the Lancaster High School auditorium.
Arrangements are being made for wake services at Wendel and Loecher Funeral Home on Aurora Street in Lancaster.
The LCTA also will be making arrangements to honor Pryzkuta.
"Eric always put others before himself," said LCTA Vice President Donald Kirsch in a written statement. "He was the first to show up for anyone in need. His passion for the teachers and students of Lancaster was unmatched. He was a true friend, and we will miss him."
The overnight search after the accident included helicopters from Detroit and Traverse City, Mich. Buffalo Police, Buffalo Fire, Hamburg Marine One and the Erie County Sheriff's Office also assisted.
My condolences to his family, students and colleagues
Georgia L Schlager
Sending prayers for all the families of this tragedy.
Nuebs24 = Nate Neubaurer I hope you can control your impulses and not post any videos of people being injured.How do you think their families would feel? . I am shocked that anyone awarded you a badge.
Nate would never do anything to take away from this tragedy.Originally Posted by Greg Sojka
It's your inappropriate impulse Greg to infer such a thing during a time of tragedy to a young family
that's incorrigible behavior
Georgia L Schlager
Neubs24 , Nate Neubaurer has posted you tube videos of people being injured because he thinks it is funny or sends a message. It is inappropriate and he should not do it. All life is precious and fragile.But I am sure you won't see it that Georgia.
Last edited by Greg Sojka; May 14th, 2018 at 05:23 PM.
Greg, it's a metaphor for most of your posts. You start out thinking you are all set, then discombobulation ensues and you end up messing it all up for what you want. It was classic that it hit at home being tree cutters. I doubt the guy suffered any serious injury in the clip Neubs24 posted on the other thread.
Great choice of thread to bring your personal vendetta against me into.
And if you're going to use my real name, spell it right, Soykuh.
Family seeks to preserve evidence in boat crash that killed Lancaster teacher
By Anne Neville Published June 23, 2018
There was no indication of foul play, was there?The family of Eric Przykuta, the Lancaster Middle School teacher who died last month in a boat crash, has retained a Buffalo law firm to consider filing a wrongful death suit against "all responsible parties," according to a statement from the attorneys.
Przykuta's widow, Lori, retained the Buffalo office of Rosenthal, Kooshoian & Lennon, which began court proceedings to "discover and preserve the evidence in this case from the various police agencies and authorities that responded to the scene, including the individuals involved, the boat involved and the breakwall involved," according to the statement from the law firm.
"We are currently investigating the matter and gathering the facts. It is premature for us to identify the suspected responsible parties at this time," partner J. Patrick Lennon said in an email.
The statement also said, "The wife and family of Mr. Przykuta are fully cooperating with the Erie County District Attorney's Office's ongoing investigation into the events that night."
The firm filed two show cause orders with State Supreme Court. The first requested that four entities and one person preserve all evidence, documentation or investigative information related to the case. That order named the City of Buffalo, the Buffalo Police Department, Safe Harbor Marina and Michael Cronin, a lieutenant in the Lancaster Police Department who was the owner and operator of the boat, Lennon said.
In a separate show cause order, the law firm asked the four local television stations — Spectrum News Buffalo, WGRZ-TV Channel 2, WIVB-TV Channel 4 and WKBW-TV Channel 7 — to preserve all tapes, digital recordings, memos, notes, unused footage and outtakes of their coverage of the story.
Both orders, requiring the parties involved to show cause why they should not comply with the request to preserve the material, were signed by Acting Justice Timothy J. Walker. Both will be heard in court on July 11.
Przykuta, 43, went fishing May 12 in Cronin's boat with Cronin and Lancaster Police Officer Shawn D. Zaffram. Both officers were off duty at the time.
Around 11 p.m., the 23- to 25-foot fishing craft crashed into the breakwall near the Small Boat Harbor off Fuhrmann Boulevard.
A distress call was placed at 11:08 p.m. and several agencies responded. They found Cronin and Zaffram on the jagged, slippery breakwall, wearing life jackets, reports indicated. Rescuers searched for Przykuta about 2 1/2 hours, Buffalo Fire Department Division Chief Patrick Britzzalaro said at the time.
The water was calm, Britzzalaro said then, but "it's pitch black out there and you're in total darkness. You can be on top of the breakwall and not see it."
The search was called off about 1:30 a.m. and resumed at daybreak May 13. The Przykuta family gathered at the Small Boat Harbor to await word.
"We were at the water waiting, hoping he would swim up," Przykuta's sister-in-law, Jennifer Przykuta, said in May.
"He was a strong man who came from a family of boaters," his father, Dennis Przykuta, said then. "He was 6-foot-2 and weighed 235 pounds. He loved the water. We went fishing together so many times."
Przykuta, 43, was found dead that morning in the water about 30 feet from the breakwall. Coast Guard officials reported he was not wearing a life jacket.
The search was conducted by the Buffalo Fire Department, Buffalo Police, the Sheriff's Office, the Hamburg Marine Rescue Unit and the Fort Erie Fire Department's Marine Rescue Unit.
Przykuta taught seventh-grade science in the Lancaster district for nearly 20 years, was president of the Lancaster Central Teachers Association for 10 years and coached boys modified lacrosse. He and his wife were the parents of two young children.
https://buffalonews.com/2018/06/23/f...aster-teacher/
Georgia L Schlager
First, there has been NO lawsuit filed as of this time, but rather it seems that the plaintiff is positioning to move ahead with such a suit in the event that the investigation so warrants. It is important for all to withhold judgment and let the legal and investigatory processes take their course.
I was surprised to read that the D.A. has been looking into the case for sometime, according to Spectrum News. Here are some of my thoughts Mr. Gorja:
I am not sure the failure of the passengers to wear a life jacket would be enough to constitute a wrongful death suit, especially if there were life jackets on board available for use. If there were jackets aboard, Przykuta was not a minor, and it was his choice to wear it. It is also my thought that if there were no jackets aboard, it was Przykuta's choice whether to board the boat or not. But those are just the perspectives of the untrained legal mind.
Therefore, was there other evidence which would support a wrongful death suit in excess of the life jacket issue. To wit:
Did the pilot/owner do something reckless or illegal that directly led to the accident? Was the pilot drunk? Was the pilot operating the vessel in a reckless way, or in dangerous circumstances, i.e. weather?
Were statements made by the survivors contradictory?
"...all responsible parties" suggests to me something in excess of pilot error and perhaps the possibility of another person's contributory involvement.
Were drugs involved?
What of the toxicology reports?
Was there evidence on the boat that suggest something even more sinister?
Blood/tissue evidence on clothing, or evidence of pre-death wounds on the body?
I note that the District was not specifically acknowledged in the statement. Interesting and curious.
Not conspiratorial, just my probative reaction to the news report. It is my opinion that public information dissemination at this time, though desirable, must prudently yield to a time frame consistent with the fair and impartial pursuit of justice.
Last edited by mark blazejewski; June 24th, 2018 at 02:48 PM.
I should have noted that my comprehensive comments are reactions to stories appearing on the WKBW Channel 7 website, Spectrum News Website, and the Buffalo News story above-posted.
When I read the story today, I just thought it was rather odd. I just assumed an accident was an accident.
Georgia L Schlager
I still accept that it was nothing more than a tragic accident. But, apparently something in the "original narrative" raised eyebrows, and led to skepticism and further probing.
That's exactly how I feel.Originally posted by mark blazejewski:
I still accept that it was nothing more than a tragic accident.
Georgia L Schlager
What is important is that the family be comfortable with the presented facts and conclusions, in order to close the tragic chapter and move on in peace.
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