WINTERTIME TRAGEDY
Girl, 12, who died playing in snow was daughter of pastor
The 12-year-old girl who died inside a snow fort in Arlington Heights was the daughter of the pastor of a nearby church, family members said Monday.
Esther Jung, of Elk Grove Village, died as a result of asphyxia and hypothermia, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office, which performed an autopsy Monday. The office ruled her death accidental.
Esther, 12, and another girl, 9, were attending services with their families at Rothem Church at 106 E. College Dr. when the girls went outside at 2:40 p.m. to play in a snowbank, according to Arlington Heights police and the medical examiner.
At some point, the makeshift fort the girls built came crashing down and buried the girls, police said. Their families went looking for them about an hour later and found them under the snow, Arlington Heights Police Sergeant Charles Buczynski said. It is unknown how long they were trapped.
While snow completely covered Esther, 9-year-old Sophia Shin was up to her chest in snow and yelled for help, said Jae Kim, Sophia’s great-uncle.
“She cried out, ‘Help me. Help me,’ but nobody heard it,” Kim said outside the church Monday.
The girls were taken to Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights, where Esther was pronounced dead at 4:30 p.m. Sophia was treated for hypothermia and was being held for observation.
Kim described Esther as an energetic and smart student. She was a sixth-grader at Collins Elementary School in Schaumburg, district officials said.
“How sad is that? Two little girls just having fun in the snow. It’s so normal, but it is a danger we don’t often think of,” said Peg Gradl, a neighbor of the family.
“She was such a sweet girl,” said Gradl. “She loved her pets. She’s had everything from hamsters to rabbits to dog and she’s been very sweet and very responsible.”