A high school football star was killed by a falling tree while checking in on his grandparents during a storm.
15-year-old Evan Kinley of Anderson, South Carolina, was exiting his car outside his grandparents’ home when a tree was uprooted by the strong winds only to land directly on the teenager.
The incident took place on Arnold Drive at 5 pm on Monday.
According to the reports, the boy’s grandparents were the first to come across Evan who was left trapped underneath the uprooted tree. While the grandparents tried their best to rescue their grandson, the tree was too heavy for them to move or lift on their own.
It wasn’t until the first responders arrived at the scene that Evan was rescued. Unfortunately, he was pronounced dead on the scene.
Besides being an aspiring football star and an avid hunter and fisherman, Evan also worked as a volunteer firefighter at Broadway Fire Department.
“He just always had a smile on his face. He showed up every day to work, was a great teammate, very energetic (and) fun to be around and he had a lot of friends on the team,” Evan’s coach, Hanna Jason Tone, said in a tribute to the young man.
Meanwhile, the Broadway Fire Department expressed: “Please keep this family in your thoughts and prayers. The next few days are going to be rough on them. Evan was a great kid.
“He was a Junior Firefighter with us and we were really looking forward to having him in the future. He’ll definitely be missed. Rest in peace our young friend. Gone too soon.”
Several members of the fire department also spoke out and branded the outdoorsman as their “family member” and a “brother” of the crew.
“We’re brothers and sisters and this fire department, there will be a void because the smile when he walked in just changed the room,” Charles Howell said.
“It’s hard to say enough good about him and I never will be able to say enough to make him shine the way he should, to be honest with you. You had to know him, but if you knew him, you liked him,” Chief David Burnette added.
Our thoughts remain with Evan’s loved ones during this challenging time.