Kids Killed by Falling Trees

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When a tree falls in the forest (or anywhere else), not only does it make a sound, but it crushes whatever happens to reside beneath. When a falling tree crushes a child, many people think of this as a freak accident. Yet such tragedies happen a lot more often than you might think. Every year there are a dozen or two such deaths around the nation.

Some of these tragedies occur during camping trips, when a dead or compromised tree, commonly referred to as a ‘widow maker,’ falls on a tent during a storm. Other times children are killed by a tree inside their own home, often while sleeping in their bed. Trees are heavy, and a large tree can easily cut through the roof of a house. They are felled by high winds or heavy snow. Here’s a look at some of the stories behind the statistics:

Falling Tree Kills 6-Year-Old in Her Backyard
Six-year-old Ellie Berg was described as an “old soul” who exuded kindness: she would compliment strangers, thank police officers for their service, and wanted to spread kindness to everybody. She loved to paint “kindness rocks” and leave them in places for strangers to find. Sadly, Ellie was taken from this world in November 2023 when a tree collapsed in the backyard of the family’s Boulder, Colorado home, crushing her.

Girl Crushed In Her Own Home
In Arnold, California, an 8-year-old girl, Haley Verzani, was killed after a 100-foot-tall tree fell onto the family’s house. The tree, with a trunk that was 3 feet in diameter, had been uprooted by a nearby creek. (March 20, 2012)

Falling Tree Crushes Child
In Hastings Township, Michigan a  6-year-old boy was stuck and killed  by a tree that his father had cut down to clear a field.  According to state troopers the father did not see  or hear his son, as he was cutting the tree with a chain saw.  The boy had apparently gone into the field to warn his father of a nearby brush fire. (3/30, 2009)

One storm, two deaths
In early January 2022, a winter storm that swept through the southeast resulted in two child deaths from falling trees. A 5-year-old boy in Georgia died after heavy rain and winds caused a tree to fall on his home, and in Townsend, Tennessee, a 7-year-old girl was killed after heavy snow caused a tree branch to snap and fall on her home.

Tree falls Onto Family Car
In New Con cord, Ohio, a mother was killed and her 5 year old son critically injured when a tree fell onto their car as they were driving near their home.  Traci Reed, 40, was killed when the partially dead tree struck the car windshield and peeled back the roof. Her son, who was strapped into a safety seat, was rushed to Nationwide Children’s Hospital in critical condition. (12/2/2008)

For more information on how to protect your kids from this safety hazard, check out the following resources:

Childproofing your yard

Camping safety

See also…


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