Falling totem pole kills boy at Pennsylvania camp

[June 19, 2007]  LOYSVILLE, Pa. (AP) -- A 13-foot totem pole fell over and struck a boy on the first day of Boy Scout camp, killing the 9-year-old, state police said Monday.

Tyler O. Shope, of Shermans Dale, died of head and chest injuries Sunday afternoon, Perry County Coroner Michael Shalonis said.

The boy's parents were nearby when the pole fell around 3:15 p.m., and his father helped lift it off him, Shalonis said. No one else was injured.

Campers were arriving at the Hidden Valley Boy Scout Camp near Loysville, about 25 miles northwest of Harrisburg, for a week of camping, state police said.

Camp emergency personnel arrived within minutes of the accident but were unable to revive the boy, said Jack Carr, executive director of the Keystone Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America, which runs the camp.

A crisis team provided counseling for campers and their parents Sunday evening, and camp activities are continuing as scheduled, Carr said.

The boy was waiting outside the camp's health lodge to have his health records reviewed at the time of the accident.

[Associated Press]