Fort Mill teen dies after yard work accident at his home, sheriff and coroner say
A Fort Mill teenager has died after a tree incident Friday at his home, according to the York County Sheriff and coroner’s office.
Colton Brown, 18, died at Piedmont Medical Center in Fort Mill, the York County coroner said.
He was a senior at Catawba Ridge High School, Fort Mill school district officials confirmed to The Herald.
Coroner Sabrina Gast said an “accident investigation” is ongoing after Brown sustained “an injury while doing yard work.”
The incident happened around 3:30 p.m. Friday and involved a rope Brown was holding that was connected to a tree limb while another person was cutting limbs, according to a sheriff’s office incident report provided to The Herald.
Fort Mill schools: Counselors on campus
The school had counselors on campus Monday. In a statement sent to families, Principal Barry Ledford confirmed Brown had died. The statement said:
“We have sad news to share. Friday, one of our 12th-grade students, Colton Brown, died at home in an accident. Each of us will react to Colton’s death in our own way. Some of us may have known him well, and some of us may not have. Either way, we may have strong feelings. You might find it difficult to concentrate on schoolwork for a little while. On the other hand, you might find that focusing on school helps take your mind off what has happened. Either is okay. I’m here for you, as well as our counselors and all other staff. We have additional counselors here to help, too. If you’d like to talk to one of them, just let me know, and you can go down to the guidance suite. There is also a space set up in the library if you need some quiet time or would like to write a note to the family.”
Ledford ended the statement by saying, “We will get through this tough time together. Please know that we love all of our students and our Catawba Ridge families. Our thoughts will continue to be with the Brown family.”
