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New York pediatrician dies after falling from moving Airstream trailer during family trip

Dr. Monika Woroniecka, 58, fell out of the passenger side door of the trailer after it was blown open by wind, police said.

A New York children's physician is dead after falling out of an Airstream trailer on Saturday during a family road trip, officials said.

Dr. Monika Woroniecka, 58, fell out of the moving trailer on State Route 12E in the town of Brownville in upstate New York, state police said in a release.

Witnesses who were driving directly behind the trailer told state troopers they saw the passenger side door of the Airstream blown open by wind, then Woroniecka's arm hanging on the door, the release said.

She was then thrown from the Airstream and hit her head on the side of the road, witnesses told New York State Police. An ambulance transported Woroniecka to Samaritan Medical Center in nearby Watertown, where she succumbed to her injuries.

Monika I. Woroniecka fell out of a moving trailer on April 6, 2024, in Brownville, N.Y.
Monika I. Woroniecka fell out of a moving trailer on April 6 in Brownville, N.Y.New York State Police

Other family members were in the trailer with Woroniecka at the time she fell out, although police did not specify which family members. They were traveling from Stony Brook on Long Island.

The trailer was being pulled by a vehicle driven by her husband, Robert P. Woroniecki. The family was on the last 20 minutes of their trip, police said.

Woroniecki was a pediatrician at Stony Brook Children’s Hospital, which told NBC News in a statement on Monday it was "deeply saddened to learn of the tragic loss of one of our esteemed colleagues over the weekend."

"Our thoughts are with her family, friends and colleagues affected by this heartbreaking event," the hospital said.

The Polish-born doctor treated children for a number of conditions, including food and environmental allergies, asthma, hives and eczema, according to her profile with Stony Brook Medicine.

Woroniecka specialized in allergy immunology since the early 2000s, and was known for cultivating long-term relationships with the families under her care.