A photographer was killed in the line of duty after inadvertently walking into a spinning airplane propeller while taking pictures in Kansas.
Amanda Gallagher, 37, was on a work assignment on Saturday capturing pictures of skydivers getting on and off planes in the town of Derby – less than 15 miles from Wichita – when she stepped back into the propeller of a plane that was stationary yet still running.
First responders took Gallagher to a local hospital, but she died there from her injuries, officials said.
The Air Capital Drop Zone, the skydiving center that operated the plane involved in the photographer’s death, said Gallagher violated “basic safety procedures”. “For unknown reasons … she moved in front of the wing” of the plane, aiming her camera upward to shoot photos, the statement said.
A GoFundMe user identifying herself as Gallagher’s sister-in-law launched a campaign on the site to raise donations meant to cover funeral expenses. The fundraiser had drawn more than $15,000 in contributions.
“Amanda Gallagher was kind, adventurous, creative and beautiful inside and out,” a message on the site says. “She was a loving daughter, sister, aunt and friend and will be greatly missed.”
That message also said Gallagher died “doing what she loved, skydiving and taking pictures”.
The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating Gallagher’s death.
