Calif. TV Producer, 23, Dead After Falling 30 Feet from Rope Swing into Lake: 'It's Just Devastating'

Kathryn Hoedt worked as a producer for Sacramento broadcast channel KCRA before her death

A California TV producer is dead after an accident involving a rope swing in a state park over the weekend.

Kathryn Hoedt died on Saturday after falling more than 30 feet from a rope swing in Folsom Lake in Sacramento, KCRA 3 reported. She landed on rocks near the reservoir water, Barry Smith, the chief ranger of the Gold Fields District of California State Parks, told Gold Country Media.

The 23-year-old’s friends brought her to a nearby dock, where an off-duty doctor performed CPR, KCRA 3 said. She was then transferred to a nearby hospital where she was pronounced dead, per the outlet.

Hoedt had been working for KCRA 3, which first reported her death, as a morning producer for the channel’s daily 8 a.m. segment.

The channel’s news director, Derek Schnell, said the team is “heartbroken about the loss,” according to the Sacramento Bee.

“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," he added. "Katie had a bright future ahead of her and she’ll be deeply missed.”

Related: Mass. Woman Who Was Missing for a Week Found Alive After Getting Stuck in Mud at Local State Park

Hoedt’s father, Andy Hoedt, expressed his heartbreak at the loss of his daughter, who was a recent graduate of NYU with a master’s in journalism, in a statement to KRCA.

“She’s just made such a massive impact and only at 23,” he said. “I just wish she could have been here for another 60, 70 years. I can’t imagine what she could have done. It’s just devastating to me.”

Her mother, Beth Hoedt, also reflected on the loss, telling the outlet, "I can’t believe it’s real, you know, she was such a bright light."

"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," she added.

Hoedt's older sister, Lexi Hoedt, described her as a “beautiful person" and said "she is gone too soon.”

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Speaking about the rope swing that led to Hoedt's death, Smith told KRCA, "You don’t know who put the rope swing up. You don’t know how strong that is. You don’t know the tree, the branch. Anything can give out and it’s extremely dangerous."

He added, “There’s a lot of danger out here that people need to be aware of.”

In light of her death, Hoedt’s family is now eager to spread information about the danger of poorly hung rope swings.

“Either cutting them down or even better yet, cutting the branch off and getting rid of the branch at all, so you can’t fashion anything there,” her father said. “We don’t want this to happen to anyone else, ever, and that’s important to us.”

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Mike Howard, the superintendent of the sector’s state park, told the Sacramento Bee that rope swings “shouldn’t be trusted.”

“This is something we don’t allow here at state parks, and we do make an effort to cut down the rope swings that we see because of situations like this," he said.

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