New York

Trevor Cadigan ‘Always Left a Lasting Impression,' Mother Says in Emotional Interview

The family of Trevor Cadigan, one of the five people killed in Sunday’s deadly helicopter crash in New York, says the SMU graduate made every day of his life count. 

“I just know that he would pack it all in in 26 years," said Caton Cadigan, Trevor's mother. "He may have lived on double time and that’s why he was so hard to keep up with.” 

They returned home to Dallas with his body late Tuesday. 

“It’s been hard, but now that Trevor’s back home in Dallas its been a little bit easier,” said Kathleen Howard, Trevor’s older sister. 

Howard spoke with her brother a day before he died. 

“I have this great memory of him just being so happy and he said, 'I love you,' and so I know he was in a good place," said Howard. 

In an emotional interview Wednesday, the family of Trevor Cadigan, one of the five people killed in Sunday's deadly helicopter crash in New York, says the SMU graduate made every day of his life count.

Trevor and his longtime friend, Dallas firefighter Brian McDaniel, were together on the sightseeing helicopter when it went down in the East River Sunday. 

“Knowing that they were together, and they stayed together, they’re together right now in Dallas, and we’re going to miss living their lives together," said Howard.

The Cadigan family is planning a family/friend service for Friday at Church of the Incarnation, followed by a Celebration of Life memorial for both Trevor and Brian at Bishop Lynch High School at 2 p.m. Saturday.

Cadigan's family filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the helicopter company and others. The lawsuit spotlights the harnesses used in the open-door flight and notes that the aircraft's inflatable floats didn't keep it from flipping over and sinking. The way passengers were harnessed, with a release mechanism in the back, there "was just no prospect of safely escaping," said Gary C. Robb, a lawyer for Cadigan's parents.

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