Mike Salsbury/The Olympian
Capital High School students grieve at a memorial for Patrick Ryan after they were notified that he died from injuries after falling from a pickup truck at the school Tuesday. From left, are Keri Soroka, Brianna Duval, Chandra Ezell and Tabatha Lillie. "He was my best friend in the whole wide world," said Ezell.

Capital High students mourn loss of classmate

Senior falls from back of pickup truck

JIM CARLILE THE OLYMPIAN

OLYMPIA -- Capital High School students were grief-stricken Wednesday after a campus accident Tuesday claimed the life of a Capital senior.

Patrick Ryan, 19, suffered a severe head injury in the school parking lot Tuesday.

Shelley Carr, spokeswoman for Olympia schools, said school officials were informed by Ryan's parents that at 1 a.m. Wednesday he was dead. When students arrived at school later in the morning, that is what they were told.

Ryan was declared dead at about 10:30 p.m. Wednesday at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.

When the accident occurred, Ryan was in the bed of a friend's pickup truck leaving the school for lunch. As the truck pulled out of the parking space, Ryan stood up and fell from the truck.

His head hit the pavement, and he was knocked unconscious. He never regained consciousness.

As students grieved Wednesday, administrators offered counseling.

"When you have a loss like this, it's very visible. Pat played football and was in the band, and he touched everybody in some way," said Frank O'Connor, Capital's principal.

Carr said extra counselors went to the school Wednesday to help deal with the grieving process.

"It's a very tragic situation," she said. "The students were not aware of it until they arrived at school, then a statement was read in each class. It's been a very challenging day, but we're doing what we can to address the needs of students."

'A huge shock'

The first thing visible Wednesday upon entering the lower parking lot of the school was the flag at half-staff. Attached to it were balloons -- "You're the greatest," one read.

There was a makeshift memorial at the base of the flagpole, with flowers and a cardboard box where students wrote messages to Ryan and his family.

"Students are dealing with the loss in their own ways and dealing with their own mortality," O'Connor said.

"It's tough. I think it's still hitting me," said Amanda Foran, 18, a senior. Foran said she has been friends with Ryan since they were in middle school.

"It's such a huge shock. Someone his age with so much going for him, and this was such a freak accident. It doesn't really make sense," she said.

Football

Danny O'Neill, 17, a junior, said he has known Ryan for about three years. O'Neill said Ryan played center and defensive tackle for the school's football team.

O'Neill said that at a game last year, Ryan was injured late in the third quarter. O'Neill's coaches and teammates were nervous about sending him in to play Ryan's position -- and he was even beginning to doubt himself.

"Pat sat down next to me and told me he knew I could do it," O'Neill said. "He always knew the right thing to say."

Wayne Sortun, the school's football coach, said Ryan, 6 feet 2 inches tall and 215 pounds, had played the sport since he was in the fifth grade. "Pat got along with everyone. He didn't belong to any particular group or clique. He had a way of reaching out and helping the younger players, and he had a big impact on the team," Sortun said.

The accident

Olympia police arrived at the school parking lot just before noon Tuesday. Medics from the Olympia Fire Department were already there.

Ryan had fallen from the back of a Toyota four-wheel-drive pickup driven by a 17-year-old friend. Dick Machlan, spokesman for the Olympia Police Department, said he didn't know yet if the driver would be charged with anything.

"In this particular case, he and the driver of the vehicle were good friends. There was certainly no intent on the part of the driver to harm his friend," Machlan said.

Riding in the bed of a pickup isn't illegal when all the seatbelts in the cab are occupied, Machlan said. Police don't know if that was the case and are investigating the accident.

Ryan sustained major head injuries and was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center.

"The vehicle was moving very slowly. It truly had nothing to do with speeding," Carr said.

A long sheet of butcher paper is posted inside the school. On it, students can write messages to Ryan and his family. Written on the paper are messages such as: "Save me a spot in heaven," "You seemed hella cool," "You'll always be my hero," and "You will be missed."

"It's scary and sad," Foran said. "Today, I've done a lot of sitting in class talking about what's important to us. I know I've shared some discussions with people I normally wouldn't have contact with."

Jim Carlile covers crime and public safety for The Olympian. He can be reached at 360-754-5465 or jcarlile@olympia. gannett.com.

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