Autopsy Released After Young Girl Dies in Snow Fort Collapse

A 12-year-old girl who died after a snow fort collapsed on her in Chicago's northwest suburbs over the weekend died from asphyxia and hypothermia, an autopsy revealed Monday.

The Cook County Medical Examiner's office ruled the death an accident caused by "entrapment in a snowbank."

Authorities identified the 12-year-old girl as Esther Jung, of Elk Grove Village.

Jung was one of two girls trapped inside a fort they had built that collapsed on top of them Sunday afternoon in Arlington Heights, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

First responders were called to Rothem Church, located in the 100 block of East College Drive, just before 3 p.m. on Sunday, officials said.

When they arrived on the scene, they discovered the two children, Esther and a 9-year-old girl, were under the fort in a snowbank.

Both girls were rushed to Northwest Community Hospital, where Esther was pronounced dead at 4:30 p.m., according to the medical examiner's office.

The 9-year-old girl was treated for hypothermia and held for observation, officials said.

Family members said the two girls went outside to play during church services, and when they hadn't returned after an hour, relatives went outside to look for them and discovered the girls underneath the snow.

Further details were not immediately available.

Contact Us