Severe South Carolina Storm Leads To Death of H.S. Footballer, Evan Kinley

Tragedy out of South Carolina emerges as a 15-year-old high school football player tragically passed on Monday. Amid storms in the city of Anderson, Evan Kinley died when a tree near his grandparents' home uprooted and fell on the teenager. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Evan Kinley played football for the T.L. Hanna Yellow Jackets. He visited his grandparents around 5 p.m. on Monday when the tree, near the garage door, struck Kinley.

Severe Storm Leads To Freak Accident

Tributes for the South Carolina football player poured in from the team, school district and the Broadway Fire Department. Kinley participated as a Junior Firefighter.

Anderson School District 5 released a statement, relayed by the Daily Mail.

"Anderson Five extends its deepest condolences, thoughts and prayers to his family during this unimaginable time," the statement read.

"Words never seem to adequately convey comfort during a time like this, but as a school district we must take a moment to remember why we are in the roles that we are, and that we serve as a beacon of light during dark times."

Jason Tone, Yellow Jackets football head coach, mourned the tragic loss.

Tone said (via WYFF), "He just always had a smile on his face. He showed up every day to work, was a great teammate, very energetic fun to be around and he had a lot of friends on the team."

Broadway Fire Department Chief David Burnette lamented Kinley's passing.

"It's hard to say enough good about him and I never will be able to say enough to make him shine the way he should, to be honest with you," he said. "You had to know him, but if you knew him, you liked him."

Rest in Peace