Mom Cathy Weed dies from severe allergic reaction after stepping on fire ant hill: family

A Georgia woman died over the weekend from what her family believes was a severe allergic reaction after stepping on a fire ant hill.

Cathy Weed, of Lawrenceville, died on June 24 after the encounter with the fire ant hill at her home, her relatives told WSAZ.

Weed had a severe allergy to the fire ants, and is believed to have died before she could get to her medicine, the loved ones said.

In the wake of the tragedy, the community immediately rallied around Weed’s 15-year-old son, who plays baseball for Mountain View High School.

The players stood side by side on the field in her honor on Sunday.

“Cathy always had a smile on her face. She was always just so cheerful, always cheering on every boy on the team, not just her son,” friend Zuhera Waite told WSAZ.

Baseball coach Jason Johnson said the team did not hesitate to step up for Weed’s son, who is a rising sophomore.

“His mom was everything to him, and he was 100%, even more so to her,” he said.

“We won’t ever let him forget her.”

Thus far, the Mountain View community has also raised over $4,000 for Weed’s family.

“I know Cathy is happy that we’re still playing ball, and it was just a great, beautiful tribute to her,” Waite said.

The medical examiner is still determining Weed’s official cause of death, according to WSAZ.

In a Facebook post from June 2018, Weed shared an upsetting photo of herself in the hospital after experiencing an allergic reaction to fire ants amid an Epipen shortage.

“What if an ant gets me while I am out of town? Benadryl doesn’t touch this!!!! I just wanted to share this with everyone who needs an epipen….stay on top of your prescriptions!” she wrote.