Atlanta

Family of Georgia anchor killed in accident speaks

ATLANTA — Taylor Terrell was one day away from her 25th birthday when she died in North Carolina. Officials say she fell 185 feet at Rainbow Falls in western North Carolina after the current trapped her under the water.

Taylor's body was found at the bottom of the falls by a bystander.

"A feeling of emptiness. A feeling I have never had before," Taylor's father, Luis Terrell, said.

Taylor's mother, father and grieving brother spent Saturday planning the funeral. They were surrounded by loving family and friends.

"She's one of a kind, and I think she is the gold standard for how a person should really live," the elder Terrell said.

Taylor joined 41NBC in 2013, the Telegraph of Macon reported. She was born in Atlanta, raised in Conyers, and a graduate of Heritage High School and Georgia Southern University, according to her Facebook and station website biography.

Taylor met veteran anchor Monica Pearson, who read to her classroom and helped inspire the young woman's career in news.

"Taylor loved people. She loved uplifting people. She was a caring person," Taylor's mother, Quovardis Terrell, said.

The family says Taylor's funeral will be held at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church July 30, but are still deciding on a time.