A 12-year-old girl was killed when one of the trees holding up a hammock she was resting in collapsed on top of her, the Lakeland Ledger reported.
Trinity Boothe was reading a book in a hammock in the backyard of her Lakeland home a little after 4 p.m. Sunday when one of the two trees fell on top of her. The girl's father, Jeffrey Boothe, said he heard a loud thud and ran outside to see his daughter pinned underneath the tree. He rolled the tree over and found her unconscious with severe wounds to her head.
Jeffrey Boothe called 911 and Polk County police and paramedics arrived to find him performing CPR on his daughter near the base of the tree. Trinity was transported to Lakeland Regional Medical Center where she died from her injuries, the Lakeland Ledger reported.
Investigators are looking into the child's death but it appears accidental and they do not suspect foul play. A cause of death is pending an autopsy to be performed by the Polk County Medical Examiner's Office.
The Boothe family has lived at the Dorman Road home for 13 years, with the hammock resting between two backyard trees that stand by a lake for at least a decade. The standing tree was still in good condition but the one that fell was apparently dead, the newspaper reported.
The Sunday incident comes three weeks after a homeless man was fatally crushed by a tree that was toppled by strong winds behind an Oregon ski lodge.
