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Man killed by falling tree in Olympic National Forest while in his tent

By FOX 13 News Staff
Published  September 1, 2022 4:31pm PDT
Jefferson County
FOX 13 Seattle

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Wash. - A man was killed by a falling tree while sleeping in his tent at the Olympic National Forest.

According to the National Park Service, authorities received an alert on Tuesday from an inReach device—which can be used to send messages or ‘SOS’ alerts when out exploring. The alert was of a fatality in the Elk Lake area, north of Mt. Olympus' west peak.

Rescuers took a helicopter to the remote campsite on Wednesday, and determined that 34-year-old Canadian Thomas Bernier-Villeneuve was in his tent when a tree came down and killed him.

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Bernier-Villeneuve was taken to the Jefferson County Coroner's Office.