West Virginia woman killed as Debby topples tree onto home

A 36-year-old woman was killed Thursday night when a large oak tree uprooted and fell on top of her home in the Shannondale community of Harpers Ferry. The incident occurred as Tropical Storm Debby brought substantial rain and strong winds to the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia.

Around 10:00 p.m., Trooper B.S. Barker of the West Virginia State Police, along with fire and emergency personnel from Jefferson County, West Virginia; Loudoun County, Virginia; and Washington County, Maryland, responded to a report of a structure collapse along Mad Hatter Road.

Upon arrival, the first responders found that the tree had fallen through the residence, pinning Stephanie Wishmyer under its weight. Despite efforts to rescue her, Wishmyer was pronounced dead at the scene due to the injuries she sustained. 

Her husband, Peter Twigg, who was in a different part of the house at the time, was able to escape without injury.

As emergency personnel worked at the scene, a second tree fell, striking a fire truck from Independent Fire Company and bringing down power lines that landed on a fire apparatus from Loudoun County, Virginia. 

Operations were temporarily stopped until the power lines were safely removed. Fortunately, no injuries were reported as a result of the second tree fall.