Poignant video shows their excitement as tour began
90 minutes beforehand to work on his game as early as seventh grade,” his bio reads.
“Over the years, Tristan has developed a strong feel for the game and has always had a deadly jump shot.”
Police identified the other four victims as Brian McDaniel, Trevor Cadigan, Carla Vallejos Blanco and Daniel Thompson.
McDaniel, 26, had been a Dallas firefighter for two years.
“Despite his short tenure, hearts are heavy with grief,” the Dallas Fire Department said in a statement.
McDaniel’s friend Cole Taylor Collins told the Dallas Morning News that the fallen firefighter had joined the department because of his devotion to the city.
“He kind of figured out that he loved Dallas so much and wanted to do something for it,” Collins said.
McDaniel’s brother, Jason, was heartbroken.
“He loved his job, loved his friends and family and loved adventure,” Jason said.
The firefighter was visiting Cadigan, his longtime friend who had moved to the city in October to pursue a career in journalism, according to Cadigan’s mother, Nancy. The buddies took a photo on Friday in front of the Brooklyn Bridge with big smiles on their faces.
“We’re all devastated. His presence would fill a room, and he was the life of the party,” Nancy Cadigan said of her son.
“He was quite a hambone. He was a class clown. He was also very creative and had such a great future.”
Cadigan, 26, had recently finished an internship at Business Insider.
“He was a smart, talented and ambitious young journalist and producer who was well-liked and made a big contribution. Our hearts go out to his family and friends,” the website said in a statement.
He was following in the footsteps of his father, who works as a production manager at Dallas news station WFAA.
A GoFundMe established to help the Cadigans with funeral expenses noted that the young journalist had “grown up” at the network.
Staffers wrote that he was a standout from an early age and spoke fluent Mandarin.
The video journalist posted his final broadcast to Instagram: a clip of himself smiling as the doomed Eurocopter AS350 took off from Kearny, N.J. McDaniel flashed a thumbs up in a backseat.
Seated to the right of McDaniel in the chopper was Blanco, 29, who worked in public relations and was visiting the city for at least the third time, according to the Argentine newspaper Clarin.
She was visiting New York with a friend and loved photography.
“The friend got worried because they had planned to meet and go to Rockefeller Center. She got in contact with us because she did not respond,” Deputy Consul General Eduardo Almirantearena told the paper.
The final victim, Thompson, 34, also worked for Sightsy. His best friend, Evan Edwards, 34, thought that Thompson and Hill took the flight as part of a test run to determine whether they’d sell tickets for the tour through the company.
“He was my oldest and best friend. He was always there for me,” Edwards said.
Thompson was a member of the Young New Yorkers’ Chorus. He sang baritone. “His passion . . . was more artistic,” Edwards said. “He loved to sing.”