Mother killed in fall at Purgatory Chasm in Massachusetts remembered by friends as "like a light"
The town of Topsfield, Massachusetts is mourning after a mother of four slipped and fell to her death while hiking with her family at Purgatory Chasm in Sutton.
"We're numb," Mo Levasseur told WBZ-TV. "It's just shocking. One minute she's here and the next she isn't."
Fell while hiking with family
Those who knew 49-year-old Carrie Sanger are trying to wrap their minds around what happened Wednesday. She was hiking at Purgatory Chasm when she slipped on the rocky terrain and fell more than 50 feet to her death. Family friend Brooke Paoli said Sanger's brother and three of her children were with her on the trail at the time.
"She was just hiking with her children and I guess she actually just lost her footing and slipped and fell," Paoli explained. "So it's just awful and tragic."
Sanger is being described as an outgoing person who lit up any room.
"She was the best," Levasseur said. "She was just so calm and peaceful and you just went towards that – like a light almost."
Owned wellness center in Topsfield
Sanger was an oncology nurse for years before she bought a holistic wellness center in Topsfield.
"She opened her wellness center and she was doing massages and things like that. She was just always in the town and with her own two hands, she renovated this property herself," Paoli said.
Sanger dedicated her life to helping others. Now, her closest friends and family are trying to support her husband and four children.
"And it's been tough," Paoli explained. "It's just unbelievable, at this point. It's just something you don't process."
The Worcester County District Attorney's Office is investigating the incident.
