23-year-old Journalist Dies After Falling 30 feet From Rope Swing In Freak Accident

Kathryn Hoedt

A 23-year-old American journalist, Kathryn Hoedt, was killed during a freak rope-swinging accident on Aug. 12, according to her employer KCRA.

The New York University graduate died after witnesses say she fell 30 feet from the rope swing onto rocks along the shoreline at Folsom Lake, just 24 miles outside of Sacramento, California.

Friends who were with Hoedt helped carry her to a nearby boat ramp where park officials were located at the time.

An off-duty doctor performed CPR before an ambulance arrived to transport Hoedt to a Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead.

“I can’t believe it’s real, you know, she was such a bright light,” her mother Beth told 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 she earned her Master’s degree from New York University in 2022.

 She joined KCRA 3 in Oct. 2022, where she produced the station’s morning show.

“Our team is heartbroken about the loss of Katie Hoedt,” KCRA 3 News Director Derek Schnell said. “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.”