Falling tree kills hiker along trail near Libby

A 61-year-old Post Falls, Idaho, woman was killed by a falling tree Sunday while hiking on the Cedar Lake Trail west of Libby.

Capt. Roby Bowe of the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office said Dianne Triplett was hiking with a friend when the incident occurred at 1:30 p.m. about five miles down the trail.

Bowe said Triplett stopped breathing after a burned-out tree, which measured 10 inches in diameter, landed on her.

Her hiking companion, who saw the tree as it began to tip, reacted quickly and suffered only minor injuries.

The man performed cardio-pulmonary resuscitation on Triplett for more than an hour before walking the nearly two miles to Upper Cedar Lake to find help, Bowe said.

A 911 call wasn’t made until about two hours after the accident because the caller had to travel approximately six miles to get cell phone service, Bowe said.

Libby Volunteer Ambulance and David Thompson Search and Rescue responded, and Triplett was pronounced dead at the scene.

Triplett had worked at Sacred Heart Hospital in Spokane, Bowe said.