Photo: Wis DNR
Officials with the state Department of Natural Resources say an oak tree that fell early Sunday morning at a state park, killing an 11-year-old girl, had “showed no evidence of weakness during prior regularly scheduled campground inspections.”
The incident at Devil’s Lake State Park near Baraboo came after thunderstorms and high winds swept through the area. The tree fell on a tent at about 4:00 a.m. Sunday, as Allison Spahr of Cary, Ill. was sleeping, along with her father Kevin Spahr, 51, and brother Kyle Spahr, 13. Allison Spahr was killed when the tree landed on her, while her father and brother received non-life threatening injuries.
The state DNR expressed their sympathies to the family, saying in a statement “Visitor safety is the number one priority on all properties the department manages and we do our very best to provide a safe environment for our visitors. Campgrounds are inspected regularly and action is taken to eliminate potential hazards whenever possible. Unfortunately, not all possible events can be foreseen.”