Woman Dies After Being Hit By Falling Tree Limb At Davis Park
DAVIS (CBS13) — A woman has died after she was hit by a falling tree limb at a Davis park late Tuesday morning.
City of Davis officials say the incident happened at Slide Hill Park just before 10:30 a.m.
A tree limb reportedly fell at the park, critically injuring a woman in her 40s who was with a child at the time. Police and fire responded and started medical aid immediately.
"We come here every day," explained Davis resident Tim Nelson. "It's tragic. We come here with our kids and it's every day we're with our kids and there is danger and obviously, the coronavirus is going on and the last thing you expect is that. It's just, how can you really plan for that?"
The woman was rushed to the UC Davis Medical Center but was later pronounced dead.
"The City of Davis extends its deepest sympathies to the surviving family and will work diligently to investigate this tragic accident," said Davis Mayor Gloria Partida in a statement Tuesday.
Police say the child who was with the woman was not injured.
"Parents they do everything they can for their kids, you take them to the park so they can play and grow, it's just sad," Nelson said.
It's unclear if the wind was a factor in the tree limb falling. Experts estimate the branch was about 30 feet long and weighed around 100 pounds. Rob Cain, Urban Forest Manager, said the branch fell from 40 to 50 feet in the air. The force was so strong it broke through a cement table.
"This is the first time something like this has happened," said Cain.
According to Cain, the trees are pruned and inspected every seven years, but he said they are currently backlogged. The city did not detail when their last inspection was completed.
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"We will look at the condition of the tree, condition of the branch to determine if there were in stress cracks inside, if there were any signs of disease and insects, is what we will look at," he said.
Cain said it was unclear if weather played a factor in the incident. The department will look into an independent risk assessment of the tree to see if it needs to come down.
Neighbors who live in the area say they want to make sure the parks are safe to bring their kids back to play.
"It could've been anyone, it could've me or my daughter," explained Rachel Ranz. "I just hope the city of Davis will go to all the parks and playgrounds in Davis and make sure this doesn't happen again."
Both the City of Davis and Davis Police Department will be investigating the incident.
