Community mourns Tuscola High cheerleader killed by fallen tree

By Rex Hodge

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    CLAY COUNTY, North Carolina (WLOS) — Community members mourn the loss of an 18-year-old Tuscola High School cheerleader who died after intense storms and wind downed a tree on a camper trailer.

“This is a loss. A devastating loss. A tragedy to everyone, most importantly to her family and friends but also a horrible loss to our cheer family,” a post on the Tuscola High School Mountaineers Cheerleading page said, in part, of teammate Kara Bryson.

Clay County Emergency Services said in a news release on Tuesday, May 28, that crews were called to the Penland Point Community near Lake Chatuge on the morning of Monday, May 27, for a fallen tree on a camper. When they arrived, crews found a deceased 18-year-old female inside.

“It took a little bit of extrication for us to get her out and a very hostile rain and lightning still going on all around,” Clay County EMS Director Jeff Ledford told News 13 Tuesday. “This was just totally tragic bad luck…The tree was only about 6-8 feet from the trailer.”

EMS said a large tree had been uprooted by straight-line winds and crashed onto the trailer. The National Weather Service in Morriston, Tennessee, told EMS there was no tornadic activity during Monday’s storm but reported straight-line winds between 50-70 mph.

Clay County officials said the victim was a Haywood County native and was in the area with friends over the long Memorial Day weekend.

“There were four other people in the trailer with her, but they all escaped serious injury,” Ledford said

Haywood County Schools’ Superintendent Trevor Putnam shared the following statement regarding the tragic death:

“We are mourning the loss of one of our precious students. Our hearts and minds are with the family during this very difficult time. Additional support is available for staff and students needing assistance. We will continue to support the needs of our Tuscola family through graduation and beyond.”

The Tuscola High School Mountaineers Cheerleading Facebook page described themselves as a cheer family and said the loss of Kara was devastating.

“We love you, Kara! Always a Tuscola Cheerleader. Always in our hearts. Forever missed!” the post said.

Read their full Facebook post below:

At Tuscola, we don’t call ourselves a cheer team we call ourselves a cheer family, and there’s a reason. It may seem simple day in and day out, but in times like this, the gravity of those words and that “family” mean everything. We raise each other. We love each other. We cheer on our teams, our athletes, our school and each other. This is a loss. A devastating loss. A tragedy to everyone, most importantly to her family and friends but also a horrible loss to our cheer family. We love you, Kara! Always a Tuscola Cheerleader. Always in our hearts. Forever missed!

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