A high school sophomore attempted to climb aboard a moving homecoming parade float but fell under the wheels and was crushed to death in front of onlookers, authorities said. Courtney Curtis, 15, and others had gotten off the float, a flatbed tractor-trailer rig, but Courtney tried to climb back on during Custer County High School's parade on Friday. The truck driver stopped immediately, authorities said. Courtney was flown to a hospital in Colorado Springs, about 60 miles northeast, where she was pronounced dead on Saturday.

"The trauma is overwhelming at this point," said Barb Jones, secondary principal for the Custer County school district. The district has a single K-12 school with 522 students.

Jones said Courtney's mother is a cook at the school's cafeteria, and Courtney has three younger siblings who attend middle, elementary and preschool classes.

Classes were canceled Monday but grief counselors were available for students.

Westcliffe, a town of about 460, is 110 miles south of Denver.