Man confirms window washer who died was his son

Bryan Prairie took the window-washing job to support his family, his father said.

By PAUL WALSH and SARAH LEMAGIE Star T ribune s t aff w r iters, Star Tribune

Last update: September 5, 2009 - 12:03 AM

The window washer who fell three stories to his death at Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park had taken the job this summer while looking for work as a nurse, his father said Friday.

Bryan Prairie, 24, of Plymouth, was dead by the time rescue personnel arrived after he and a co-worker fell from scaffolding along the 40-foot-tall building about 3 p.m. Thursday.

The Hennepin County Medical Examiner's office has not released the man's name, but Bill Prairie confirmed Friday that the dead man was his son.

Prairie was working for Consider It Done Cleaning to support his wife and 5-month-old son, his father said. The young man, who graduated from Augustana College in Sioux Falls, S.D., had just passed his nursing boards in July after earning degrees in biology and nursing.

The other man who fell was alert and talking soon after the accident, and was taken to Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis.

In a statement issued Friday, a co-owner of the New Hope-based window washing company expressed sympathy over Prairie's death. "We were afforded a great opportunity to have him be a part of our little family, and we are heartbroken that he is gone," wrote Chris Bemis, who started the company about 10 years ago when he was in high school.

Bemis did not identify the other worker, but said that he was in his 20s and described him as a "dear friend of mine" who has been in the business with him since the start.

The company has a spotless safety record, Bemis said in an interview Friday. "We've never had an incident," he said.

"Never had a claim on our general liability. We've never had a broken bone. We've never even had a broken window."

Consider It Done has cleaned windows at Park Nicollet for about three years, Bemis said, and "nothing has ever, ever, ever happened."

Bemis declined to speak about the circumstances surrounding the fall, citing the state investigation. In the meantime, he said, "The people at Park Nicollet are helping us try to find a way to help the families" of the two men.

"I don't know what to say until someone finishes their investigation," said Bemis, who added that the company helped him put himself and his wife through college at the University of Minnesota. "That's the boat we're in. We're trying to figure out what happened." A check of records Friday by Minnesota OSHA showed no violations for Consider It Done.

In March, a window washer fell to his death outside an office tower in Bloomington. Jacob John Jennings, 20, of Coon Rapids, fell about 30 feet at the 24-story, 381-foot-tall 8500 Tower near Interstate 494 and Normandale Boulevard, police said. He died the next day at Hennepin County Medical Center.

In 2008, Minnesota had 65 fatal workplace injuries, according to the state Department of Labor and Industry, down from 72 in 2007 and 78 in 2006. Of the 2008 deaths, three were from falls, compared with 11 in 2007.

pwalsh@startribune.com • 612-673-4482 slemagie@startribune.com • 612-673-7557

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