UW-Madison senior Eric Passon passed away on New Year's Day after falling from a crane near his hometown of Wapun, Wis.
Passon's sister, Stacy Passon, 24, described her brother as a brilliant young man who loved family and spent time with his four-year-old nephew and eight-year-old brother.
'Eric was a very good kid. He was a very smart boy,' Stacy Passon said. 'It was one mistake that cost Eric his life.'
Lt. Steve Klein of the Fond du Lac Police Department confirmed that alcohol played a role in the incident.
Klein said Eric Passon and a friend had visited downtown Fond du Lac and were walking to a restaurant at approximately 3 a.m., but ended up in the Giddings and Lewis mechanical plant. There, Klein said they climbed a 50-60 foot tall crane where Passon fell.
According to Klein, Passon's companion was 'petrified at that point,' and remained on the crane for a length of time until he flagged down a passing police car at 12:42 p.m.
According to Rebecca Quall, deputy chief investigator of the Fond Du Lac County coroner's office, Passon died from 'multiple traumatic injuries due to a fall from a height.'
Klein said it is unclear how Passon and his friends got into the 'highly secured' plant yard, which is surrounded by a fence, and added that police are reviewing security footage as part of an ongoing investigation.
Meanwhile, UW-Madison Interim Dean of Students Lori Berquam said Eric Passon will be missed at the university.
'He was a great member of our campus community and it's a huge loss to have him no longer with us,' she said.
Stacy Passon, who said her brother was normally cautious and responsible, said she hopes his death will cause students to think twice about their actions involving alcohol and to remember that life is precious.
'Eric always found the positive in everything,' she said.
'He would want us to take something away from this.'
