Esther Jung, a 12-year-old Illinois girl, died when a snow bank fell on her and a playmate, the Chicago Daily Herald is reporting. The young lady is one of five deaths attributed to this past weekend's winter storm.
On Sunday, Esther, who is the daughter of the pastor at the church where the girls were playing, went to church in Arlington Heights with her family. At some point, she and another girl went outside to play in the snow. The girl's uncle, Jae Kim, says that the two girls were playing when a makeshift snow fort that they had built collapsed on them.
"She cried out, 'Help me. Help me,' but nobody heard it."
Her playmate, 9-year-old Sophia Shin, remains in the hospital for observation and for treatment of hypothermia.
Esther was a sixth grader at Collins Elementary School in Schaumburg. Her principal has spoken to the family and offered to provide any support they may need, according to a statement from the school district.
