A tree fell onto the backyard pool of a Bronx residence Monday afternoon, killing one woman and leaving a second hospitalized, police said.
The deadly incident occurred around 1:30 p.m. at an apartment building off Palisades Avenue in Spuyten Duyvil, the NYPD said. A thunderous crack sent the tree hurdling down toward the private pool.
A 59-year-old woman, later identified as Donna Douglas, died from injuries sustained in the fall. Another woman, identified by sources as 72-year-old Beth Smith, was also hurt and transported to a nearby hospital for treatment.
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Witnesses nearby said there weren't any strong winds when the large tree came crashing down without any warning. The two women were lounging in the water at the time, witnesses said, as Douglas was enjoying a swim during her lunch break.
"We saw the tree in the pool. Two women walking around dazed, and the woman who passed away, who was killed, she was laying on a float on a raft and her face was in the water," said witness Jay Berg.
Douglas was pulled from the water by the building's superintendent within minutes, but she succumbed to her injuries. Another witness who knew Douglas said that she was hit in the head "pretty hard," and that even if "EMS was here on the spot, they couldn't resuscitate her."
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Friends say the two women loved swimming and could often be found at the building's pool.
"She was a pool person, she was always swimming with her friend, who was also injured," Sandra Roberts told News 4.
The downed tree belongs on private property, as the NYC Parks Department confirmed it did not belong to them. It's still unclear what brought it down, or who was responsible for it. One person said that the tree looked dead on the inside, but healthy on the outside.
Many who live on a tree-lined street in the area said that the health of neighborhood trees is a constant worry.
"It's a scary thing. There's all over this area of Riverdale. I mean, even in this block here any time there's a bad wind on Palisades Avenue, trees come down," said Diane Meenagh.
The tragic death came two days after a huge tree limb fell on a man at a Brooklyn park, sending him to the hospital in critical condition, city officials said. The man in that incident died at the hospital Monday night.
The man was sitting at the Reinaldo Salgado Playground in Bed-Stuy during the picture-perfect morning Saturday, when it quickly turned into a gruesome scene after the man, who has not been identified, was struck in the head.
An eyewitness said that he heard a loud crack immediately before the man was hit.
"I heard this big crash, I looked over here and the tree hit him in the head," said the witness, who did not wish to be identified. He also shared photos showed medics rushing to control the bleeding from the man's head. He was rushed to Kings County Hospital, where he died two days later.
The Parks Department had forestry experts inspect the tree, and deemed it was in good condition. The city said that the limb that fell was pruned in 2020, with a witness describing it as "an old limb, didn't have any leaves, anything on it."
