The Tragic Death of a 23-Year-Old Journalist in a Freak Accident

Publish date: 2024-05-04

A young journalist and New York University graduate lost her life in a tragic rope-swinging incident on August 12, as reported by her employer KCRA.

Kathryn Hoedt, aged 23, tragically fell 30 feet from a rope swing onto rocks near the shoreline at Folsom Lake, just 24 miles outside of Sacramento, California, according to witnesses.

Her friends, who were present at the scene, assisted in moving her to a nearby boat ramp where park officials were stationed. An off-duty doctor administered CPR, and Hoedt was later transported to a Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead.

“I can’t believe it’s real, you know, she was such a bright light,” expressed her mother Beth to KCRA.

“Today, I tried to get some work done, and it was really, really hard because I knew Katie’s never going to be calling me again, and it’s going to be just something that I’m never going to get used to.”

Hoedt graduated from San Jose State University in 2021 before obtaining her Master’s degree from New York University in 2022.

She joined KCRA 3 in October 2022, where she was involved in producing the station’s morning show.

Expressing their grief, KCRA 3 News Director Derek Schnell said, “Our team is heartbroken about the loss of Katie Hoedt. She had a vibrant personality, she lit up the newsroom with her enthusiasm and her laughter was contagious.

“She was also proud to be a journalist and she was deeply committed to serving our community. Katie had a bright future ahead of her and she’ll be deeply missed.”

The KCRA 3 news station wrote on its website: “Her coworkers universally said she was one of the nicest people they ever worked with.”


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