Woman killed, another injured after tree falls into pool in the Bronx
NEW YORK -- A Bronx woman was killed after a tree came crashing down into a pool and hit her.
It happened on Monday afternoon on the 2600 block of Palisade Avenue.
The incident happened just two days after a Brooklyn man was killed after a tree branch feel on him while he was at a park.
CBS2's Astrid Martinez was in the Bronx, where a second victim who was in that private pool is in critical but stable condition.
Monday's tragedy unfolded in the backyard of a residential building, an area that's completely nestled by trees.
But Chopper 2 showed the tree was in the property of a neighboring apartment complex. CBS2 reached out to the complex for a comment, but did not immediately hear back.
"It was no wind. The tree just went," Jay Berg said.
One moment there was sunshine and calm blue skies. The next there was horror.
"We saw the tree in the pool, two women walking around dazed ... and the woman who passed away, she was laying on a float, a raft, and her face was in the water. Nobody got her out. Nobody," Berg said.
Police said the 59-year-old woman was laying on a float in the pool at the River Terrace Apartments on Palisade Avenue at around 1:40 p.m. She died after a huge tree from the neighboring building toppled over and struck her.
She was pronounced on the scene.
A 72-year-old woman was also seriously injured, but is expected to recover.
Berg lives in the building next door and saw the horrific scene unfold.
"I've never felt so helpless in my life. I'm beating myself up. Maybe I should have climbed the fence or something, but there was like a 20-foot drop," Berg said.
The city Department of Buildings confirmed that the tree was on private property and was the responsibility of the building owner.
"And she laid in the raft with her face in the water for a good 10 minutes before somebody came down from the building and pulled the raft out," a person said.
Over in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, police say a park goer died over the weekend after being hit by a fallen tree branch.
Jared Richardson, 35, was sitting on a bench on Saturday morning and suffered severe head trauma.
"It's incredibly frightening and jarring to hear that somebody in the community lost their life while they were sitting here enjoying themself," resident Sam Giordano said.
City parks officials said the branch fell from about 40 feet up.
Sources said the tree was pruned in July 2020 and was found to be in good condition during an inspection that following August.
Back in the Bronx, an investigation into what brought that tree down continues.
Tuesday morning, multiple witnesses said the super of the building quickly jumped into the water to pull Douglas from under the tree, and it was obvious she was dead.
Several people said they called 911 within moments.
Residents of the building also said a lifeguard was on duty and she quickly aided one of the injured.
Sandra Roberts told CBS2 she had lived in the building for 10 years. She said management is diligent and responsible.
"This tragedy has cast a pall on a wonderful place to live," she said.
