Rich Behm
Encyclopedia
Rich Behm former scouting assistant for the Dallas Cowboys
who was permanently paralyzed from the waist down after his spine was severed during the collapse of the team's tent-like practice structure in a severe storm May 2, 2009.
collapsed during a wind storm. The no-frills building was essentially a 100-yard football field with a few more yards of clearance all the way around. The roof was 80 feet high, the equivalent of an eight-story building. The collapse left Behm and 11 other Cowboys players and coaches injured. The two most serious injuies were Behm and Joe DeCamillis, the team's Special Teams Coach. DeCamillis suffered fractured cervical vertebrae and had surgery to stabilize fractured vertebrae in his neck, and Behm was permanently paralyzed from the waist down after his spine was severed.
About 70 people, including 27 players attending a rookie minicamp, were in the structure when the storm hit. Wind in the area around that time was clocked at 64 mph, a single mph shy of the threshold for a weak tornado
. National Weather Service
officials said a "microburst
" may have pushed the wind beyond 70 mph at the top of the structure that was built in 2003. Most of the 27 players taking part in the minicamp were drafted the previous weekend or signed as undrafted rookies. None of the team's veterans were involved. Coaches, support staff and media were also in the structure.
owner Jerry Jones
, who was attending the Kentucky Derby
on Saturday when the accident occurred, didn't stop to talk to media outside the team's Valley Ranch headquarters Sunday morning when he arrived or left. He later released a statement, "To the Behm family we extend our love, comfort, and the full support of every person and resource within the organization," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said in a statement. "Rich is a courageous member of our family and someone for whom we care deeply. We ask for all friends and fans of the Dallas Cowboys to join us in embracing him and his family with their thoughts and prayers at this very difficult time."
established a trust fund for the family of Rich Behm. Bank of America
, in conjunction with the Dallas Cowboys
, they currently accept donations on behalf of Behm and his wife and three young children at Bank of America
locations.
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
who was permanently paralyzed from the waist down after his spine was severed during the collapse of the team's tent-like practice structure in a severe storm May 2, 2009.
Practice Facility Collapse and Injury
On May 2, 2009, the Dallas Cowboys tent like practice facility provided by Summit StructuresSummit Structures
Summit Structures is a construction and manufacturing company based in Allentown, Pennsylvania, United States. Summit Structures provides fabric-membrane buildings up to 300' wide including design, construction, and project management services for structures built for temporary and permanent use...
collapsed during a wind storm. The no-frills building was essentially a 100-yard football field with a few more yards of clearance all the way around. The roof was 80 feet high, the equivalent of an eight-story building. The collapse left Behm and 11 other Cowboys players and coaches injured. The two most serious injuies were Behm and Joe DeCamillis, the team's Special Teams Coach. DeCamillis suffered fractured cervical vertebrae and had surgery to stabilize fractured vertebrae in his neck, and Behm was permanently paralyzed from the waist down after his spine was severed.
About 70 people, including 27 players attending a rookie minicamp, were in the structure when the storm hit. Wind in the area around that time was clocked at 64 mph, a single mph shy of the threshold for a weak tornado
Tornado
A tornado is a violent, dangerous, rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. They are often referred to as a twister or a cyclone, although the word cyclone is used in meteorology in a wider...
. National Weather Service
National Weather Service
The National Weather Service , once known as the Weather Bureau, is one of the six scientific agencies that make up the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the United States government...
officials said a "microburst
Microburst
A microburst is a very localized column of sinking air, producing damaging divergent and straight-line winds at the surface that are similar to, but distinguishable from, tornadoes, which generally have convergent damage. There are two types of microbursts: wet microbursts and dry microbursts...
" may have pushed the wind beyond 70 mph at the top of the structure that was built in 2003. Most of the 27 players taking part in the minicamp were drafted the previous weekend or signed as undrafted rookies. None of the team's veterans were involved. Coaches, support staff and media were also in the structure.
Cowboys Reaction
Dallas CowboysDallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
owner Jerry Jones
Jerry Jones
Jerral "Jerry" Wayne Jones is the owner and general manager of the NFL team, the Dallas Cowboys.-Early life:Jones was born in Los Angeles, California. His family moved to North Little Rock, Arkansas when he was an infant. Jones was a star running back at North Little Rock High School...
, who was attending the Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
on Saturday when the accident occurred, didn't stop to talk to media outside the team's Valley Ranch headquarters Sunday morning when he arrived or left. He later released a statement, "To the Behm family we extend our love, comfort, and the full support of every person and resource within the organization," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said in a statement. "Rich is a courageous member of our family and someone for whom we care deeply. We ask for all friends and fans of the Dallas Cowboys to join us in embracing him and his family with their thoughts and prayers at this very difficult time."
Behm Trust Fund
After an outpour of support from fans the Dallas CowboysDallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
established a trust fund for the family of Rich Behm. Bank of America
Bank of America
Bank of America Corporation, an American multinational banking and financial services corporation, is the second largest bank holding company in the United States by assets, and the fourth largest bank in the U.S. by market capitalization. The bank is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina...
, in conjunction with the Dallas Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
, they currently accept donations on behalf of Behm and his wife and three young children at Bank of America
Bank of America
Bank of America Corporation, an American multinational banking and financial services corporation, is the second largest bank holding company in the United States by assets, and the fourth largest bank in the U.S. by market capitalization. The bank is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina...
locations.