Crushed to death by killer storm: High school cheerleader dies after tree falls on trailer in North Carolina
- Kara Bryson, 18, died Monday morning at Penland Point in western NC
- She was killed when 70 mph winds struck a tree on the trailer she was in
- Kara dreamed of becoming a nurse and was about to graduate from high school
A high school cheerleader and aspiring nurse was killed after a tree fell on her trailer in North Carolina just days before she was set to graduate.
Kara Bryson, 18, died Monday morning when winds of up to 75 miles per hour uprooted a tree and crushed the camper she was staying in with friends on picturesque Penland Point, close to Chatuge Lake.
She was scheduled to graduate from Tuscola High School in her hometown of Waynesville, NC, this Friday.
Kara was in the trailer with four friends at the time, according to Clay County NC Emergency Services who responded to the scene over Memorial Day weekend.
“A large tree was uprooted by heavy winds in a straight line and landed on the portion of the trailer where the victim was sitting,” the department said.
Kara Bryson (pictured), 18, died Monday morning when winds of up to 75 miles per hour uprooted a tree and crushed the camper she was staying in with friends at picturesque Penland Point, close to Chatuge Lake
Friends who have a fundraising as Kara’s devastated family described her as “a beautiful soul who was tragically taken too soon.”
They said she was “recently appointed a CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant)” and that she “enjoyed working with the residents” at her local Skyland Terrace nursing home.
“Kara is loved by many, especially her mother, father and three younger brothers,” the fundraiser reads.
The teen’s cheer team also mourned her loss in a heartbreaking post on Facebook.
‘This is a loss. A devastating loss. A tragedy for everyone, especially her family and friends…but also a terrible loss for our cheer family,” said Tuscola High School Mountaineers Cheerleading.
The teen’s cheer team also mourned her loss in a heartbreaking message posted online
Kara was in the trailer with four friends at the time, according to Clay County NC Emergency Services who responded to the scene over Memorial Day weekend
‘We love you, Kara! Always a Tuscola Cheerleader. Always in our hearts. Missed forever!’
The high school student planned to get ready for graduation with her best friend Callie Parker on Friday, as they did for prom earlier in May, according to The Mountaineer.
Callie now plans to decorate an empty chair in Kara’s memory at the graduation ceremony, the outlet reported.
The high school student planned to get ready for graduation with her best friend Callie Parker (left) on Friday, as they did for prom earlier in May, according to The Mountaineer
Friends said Kara was “recently pinned as a CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant)” and that she “enjoyed working with the residents” at her local Skyland Terrace nursing home
“There will be a place missing, someone who has worked hard all their life to be there and now doesn’t have the opportunity,” Chloe Thompson, a high school student and cheerleader, told The Mountaineer.
“I think it’s going to be difficult for all of us.”