- Monika Woroniecka, 58, killed in a freak highway accident while on family vacation
- Her husband Robert was driving a pickup truck and pulling a caravan when the door swung open
- She desperately tried to pull away, but fell and hit her head on the road
A doctor was killed when she fell from a moving caravan while desperately clinging to the door during a family camping trip.
Monika Woroniecka, 58, a pediatrician from Long Island, was in the silver 2024 Airstream as the family traveled along State Route 12E.
On Saturday around 3 p.m., they passed through Watertown, New York, with her husband Robert, 59, in the gray 2019 Ram pickup that was pulling the caravan.
Suddenly, the passenger side door of the Airstream was blown open by a gust of wind and Dr. Woroniecka was thrown outside, holding the door handle for dear life.
Monika Woroniecka, 58, was killed when she fell from a moving caravan while desperately clinging to the door during a family camping trip
She was in the silver 2024 Airstream when the family was traveling along State Route 12E and the door suddenly flew open in a gust of wind
Dr. Woroniecka was a pediatric allergy and immunology specialist at Stony Brook Medicine, where she worked for more than 20 years
Motorists driving behind the caravan said she lost her grip and fell, hitting her head on the highway shoulder and suffering fatal injuries.
“Cape Vincent Ambulance transported Monika to the Samaritan Medical Center emergency room where she succumbed to her injuries and was pronounced deceased,” New York State Police said.
The family was just 20 minutes from reaching their destination from their home in Stony Brook, Long Island, when Dr. Woroniecka was killed.
Dr. Woroniecka has at least two daughters, Helena and Alexandra, who may have been traveling with her and Robert.
Helena followed her mother into science, studying biochemistry at Stony Brook University and now working on a doctorate at the University of Arizona, while Alexandra studies at Julliard in New York City.
Her husband Robert, 59, (left) was driving the pickup truck and pulling the caravan in which Dr. Woroniecka (right) was driving. They are pictured with one of their daughters who may have been with them on the journey.
Dr. Woroniecka has at least two daughters, Helena (right) and Alexandra (left), who may have been with her and Robert on the trip
The scene on State Route 12E near Watertown, New York, on Saturday afternoon
Dr. Woroniecka was a pediatric allergy and immunology specialist at Stony Brook Medicine, where she worked for more than twenty years.
She treated children with food, environmental, drug and bee sting allergies, childhood asthma and skin conditions such as eczema and hives.
‘Dr. Woroniecka enjoys traveling, hiking, exercising and spending time with family and friends,” according to her work profile.
She grew up in Poland and attracted Polish-speaking patients from across the region, it added.
State troopers are investigating the accident.