Coroner identifies body of woman found with vehicle in Olympic National Park

PORT ANGELES — A woman whose body was discovered with a vehicle near Hurricane Ridge on July 2 has been identified as Kathryn Grace Kennedy, Clallam County Coroner Mark Nichols said.

The 57-year-old was found with a minivan about 200 feet below Obstruction Point Road.

She had been reported as missing from Issaquah, park spokeswoman Penny Wagner said Tuesday.

“Next of kin has been notified,” said Nichols, Clallam County prosecuting attorney and ex officio coroner.

“We are awaiting autopsy results from the King County Medical Examiner’s Office.”

Park rangers rappelled down the embankment to recover Kennedy’s body after a visitor reported seeing what he believed to be trash down an embankment below the 8-mile dirt road that leads from Hurricane Ridge to Obstruction Point.

Kennedy’s body was one of three discovered in Olympic National Park on the weekend of July 1-2.

The body of William “Dave” Woodson, 60, of Kingston was discovered in a boulder field found near the Norwegian Memorial on the Pacific coast June 1.

Dr. Eric Kiesel, a contract medical examiner, performed an autopsy on Woodson’s body in Sequim on Monday, Nichols said.

The preliminary cause of death was listed as salt water drowning and the preliminary manner of death was an accident, Nichols said.

“There’s a contributing cardiovascular condition underlying that finding,” Nichols added.

The death occurred by “natural disease process aggravated by hostile environment,” according to Keisel’s report.

Cardiomegaly, or an enlarged heart, was listed under “other significant conditions.”

There were no evidence of injuries on Woodson’s body “except superficial injuries from floating in the surf,” the autopsy revealed.

Meanwhile, the body of missing hiker Zach Krull was found near Lake Cushman on the southeast side of Olympic National Park on July 1.

Krull, 20, of Livingston, N.J., was a student at The Evergreen State College who had been missing since early April.

While the results of a Friday autopsy were inconclusive, Mason County Coroner Wes Stockwell said Krull most likely died from hypothermia or the loss of core body temperature.

________

Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56450, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.

More in News

Two dead after tree falls in Olympic National Forest

Two women died after a tree fell in Olympic National… Continue reading

Sue Long, left, Vicki Bennett and Frank Handler, all from Port Townsend, volunteer at the Martin Luther King Day of Service beach restoration on Monday at Fort Worden State Park. The activity took place on Knapp Circle near the Point Wilson Lighthouse. Sixty-four volunteers participated in the removal of non-native beach grasses. (Steve Mullensky/for Peninsula Daily News)
Work party

Sue Long, left, Vicki Bennett and Frank Handler, all from Port Townsend,… Continue reading

Portion of bridge to be replaced

Tribe: Wooden truss at railroad park deteriorating

Kingsya Omega, left, and Ben Wilson settle into a hand-holding exercise. (Aliko Weste)
Process undermines ‘Black brute’ narrative

Port Townsend company’s second film shot in Hawaii

Jefferson PUD to replace water main in Coyle

Jefferson PUD commissioners awarded a $1.3 million construction contract… Continue reading

Scott Mauk.
Chimacum superintendent receives national award

Chimacum School District Superintendent Scott Mauk has received the National… Continue reading

Hood Canal Coordinating Council meeting canceled

The annual meeting of the Hood Canal Coordinating Council, scheduled… Continue reading

Bruce Murray, left, and Ralph Parsons hang a cloth exhibition in the rotunda of the old Clallam County Courthouse on Friday in Port Angeles. The North Olympic History Center exhibit tells the story of the post office past and present across Clallam County. The display will be open until early February, when it will be relocated to the Sequim City Hall followed by stops on the West End. The project was made possible due to a grant from the Clallam County Heritage Advisory Board. (Dave Logan/for Peninsula Daily News)
Post office past and present

Bruce Murray, left, and Ralph Parsons hang a cloth exhibition in the… Continue reading

This agave grew from the size of a baseball in the 1990s to the height of Isobel Johnston’s roof in 2020. She saw it bloom in 2023. Following her death last year, Clallam County Fire District 3 commissioners, who purchased the property on Fifth Avenue in 2015, agreed to sell it to support the building of a new Carlsborg fire station. (Matthew Nash/Olympic Peninsula News Group file)
Fire district to sell property known for its Sequim agave plant

Sale proceeds may support new Carlsborg station project

As part of Olympic Theatre Arts’ energy renovation upgrade project, new lighting has been installed, including on the Elaine and Robert Caldwell Main Stage that allows for new and improved effects. (Olympic Theatre Arts)
Olympic Theatre Arts remodels its building

New roof, LED lights, HVAC throughout

Weekly flight operations scheduled

Field carrier landing practice operations will be conducted for aircraft… Continue reading