Daughter of NY pediatrician who watched her mom fall to her death from moving Airstream caravan on family trip to watch eclipse says trailer had ‘significant safety oversight’

The daughter of a Long Island pediatrician who died after falling from a moving Airstream believes the caravan had a ‘significant safety oversight’. 

Monika Woroniecka, 58, had just stopped for ice cream at a gas station with her family enroute to their AirBnb in Cape Vincent, New York, before falling to her death.

Woroniecka and her daughter Helena decided to ride the last 20 minutes of their trip in the $130,000 Airstream camper.

While Woroniecka was trying to secure the passenger side of the camper, she was thrown from the Airstream and died in front of her horrified family.

Speaking to the New York Post, Helena said that while her mom’s death was ‘pure accident’, the design of the trailer suffered a ‘significant safety oversight’ due to the door’s rear hinge which means it opens against the wind.

Dr. Woroniecka was a children’s allergy and immunology specialist at Stony Brook Medicine, which she practiced for more than 20 years

Woroniecka is seen here alongside her husband Dr. Robert Woroniecka and their two daughters Alexandra and Helena

While Woroniecka was trying to secure the passenger side of the camper, she got thrown from the $130,000 Airstream

The family was on their way to view the eclipse and had just stopped for ice cream before the tragedy 

Rear-hinged doors such as these are also known as ‘suicide doors’ because they are easier to open during motion. Most passenger vehicles have the opposite mechanism and are hinged at the front. 

She told the outlet: ‘The doors on the Airstream open the opposite way that you would expect.

‘It doesn’t take an engineering degree to know that on any moving vehicle, whether a bus or a car or a trailer, doors should open against the wind, not towards it.

‘That seems like a significant safety oversight to me and seems like the only reason they do open that way is to protect the awning of the trailer.’ 

Woroniecka’s husband Robert Woroniecka, 59, was driving the couple’s 2019 gray Ram pick-up truck west around 3 pm Saturday on Route 12 E in Brownville when the tragedy happened. 

Witnesses behind the Airstream claimed they saw the passenger side door of the Airstream open, and Woroniecka’s arm hanging on the door after the wind caused the door to swing ajar. 

When emergency personnel arrived, she was transported to Samaritan Medical Center where she died.

Helena also told the outlet that her mom had named the caravan Nebula, as ‘it represented adventure and exploration’. 

She said: ‘She loved that trailer so much and poured her soul into it. She would go in there even just to sleep at home when it was rainy and put so much love into it.

‘She did also love to travel and explore, which is why my parents bought the trailer — they were planning to take an early retirement and travel to national parks and spend time exploring together.

‘My mom loved her family above everything else, so the fact that my sister and I were coming home so everyone could go see the eclipse together — that’s what she was most excited for was spending time with everyone.’

Witnesses behind the Airstream claimed they saw the passenger side door of the Airstream open, and Woroniecka’s arm hanging on the door after the wind caused the door to swing ajar

New York State Police continue to investigate the incident that claimed Woroniecka’s life

Dr. Woroniecka has three daughters including Alexandra (left) and Helena (right), who was with her on the trip

In a statement to DailyMail.com on Tuesday, Airstream said that the family should have not been in the back of the caravan while it was being towed. 

‘Airstream is saddened to hear about the death of Dr. Monika Woroniecka on April 6, 2024, and our deepest sympathies go out to her family, friends and community,’ a spokesperson said. 

‘Airstream travel trailers are not designed to carry passengers while in motion. The safety protocol detailed in Airstream’s operating manuals and shared on Airstream’s website advises owners that they cannot tow an Airstream with people inside. 

‘Many states prohibit carrying passengers in a travel trailer or fifth wheel, and we advise owners to consult their state’s Department of Motor Vehicles for up-to-date regulations.’ 

Helena added: ‘This was an accident. Pure accident, and there’s nobody to blame. This is nobody’s fault.

‘Sure, maybe Airstream doesn’t advise traveling inside the trailer. But we thought maybe that the last 20 minutes of an eight-hour drive on very quiet and slow country roads would be fine.

‘And it’s perfectly legal to do so in some states. It was just a crazy accident. She was the most loving, generous, and golden-hearted person I’ve ever known.

‘She was always, always thinking about how to lend a helping hand to someone, whether her family or patients or friends that had medical questions or strangers on the street.’ 

The scene on State Route 12E near Watertown, New York, on Saturday afternoon

The caravan’s doors are rear-hinged meaning they open towards the back of the vehicle, making them more liable to being picked up by the wind especially while in motion

Neighbor Maria Antipas was left distraught outside the Woroniecka Stony Brook, New York, home on Monday over the news of Woroniecka’s passing. 

‘I can’t believe something like this would happen. They are just a lovely family, good neighbors. She’s a nice person,’ Antipas said. 

Antipas said they would look after each other’s houses when they travel and said she had a key to their home.

‘They just left the other day,’ she recalled. ‘They got an Airstream a couple of months ago and they’ve been taking little trips. I watch their house for them when they are gone, and they do the same for me.’

Richard, a kidney doctor at Stonybrook, and his wife had moved into the home on Dogwood Drive in Stonybrook six or seven years ago.

She said that the couple were outdoorsy and have three grown daughters who are all very bright. 

She told DailyMail.com she remembered the day Richard drove the airstream home.  ‘It was shiny, she recalled. ‘They were so excited to get it.’

Maria said that the last time she saw Woroniecka was the day before she left. She was walking her dogs and they waved to each other. 

The family appear to have been riding in a New 2024 Airstream Bambi 16RB

The thoughtfully-designed relatively small camper is sixteen feet in length and sleeps four

The cost of the brand new model begins at $60,400

In New York State, it is illegal to ride in a non-fifth wheel trailer while it’s in motion. The manufacturers of Airstream also warn against riding in the campervan while it is in motion

Utterly devastated, she repeated: ‘I can’t believe something like that happened. It’s so tragic.’

It is illegal to tow passengers in an Airstream in New York State, in addition to being something the company warns against.

Dr. Woroniecka was a children’s allergy and immunology specialist at Stony Brook Medicine, which she practiced for more than 20 years.

She treated children with food, environmental, medications, and bee stings allergies, childhood asthma and skin conditions like eczema and hives. 

‘Dr. Woroniecka likes to travel, hike, exercise, and spend time with family and friends,’ her work profile read.

She grew up in Poland and drew in Polish-speaking patients from around the region, it added.