Falling Tree Kills Girl At Camp -- `Freak' Accident Claims 12-Year- Old

A 12-year-old girl at Camp Sealth on Vashon Island was killed instantly when a 100-foot alder tree fell on her yesterday afternoon as she was hiking up from the beach.

The girl, Kelly Richards of Renton, was with four or five hikers when they heard a loud crack, according to John Urquhart, King County Sheriff's spokesman.

All but Kelly were able to move out of the way.

According to Urquhart, a sheriff's sergeant who arrived at the scene said there were no winds to cause the tree to uproot and called the accident "a freak of nature."

Kelly is the daughter of Julie and Doug Richards.

Officials with Camp Fire Boys and Girls Puget Sound, which operates Camp Sealth, said there was at least one adult counselor with the group.

All hiking areas on the camp's property, including the Kiwanis Trail where the accident occurred, will remain open, said Renee Smith, Camp Fire spokeswoman.

Officials said the accident was an isolated incident, but as a precaution, they planned to consult an expert to assess all the trees.

Camp officials planned to call the parents of all campers, said Lee Drechsel, executive director of Camp Fire.

Drechsel could not explain how the accident occurred and said nothing like this had ever happened in the camp's 77-year history.

Camp Sealth is one of the largest coed residential camps on the West Coast and serves about 9,000 people year-round, including 2,700 in the summer.

Its 400-acre site, on the southwestern part of Vashon Island, has 1 1/2 miles of beachfront.

Kelly was one of about 300 children who had arrived on Saturday for a six-day residential program.