WHY THE TREE CAME DOWN? NO, NOT YET, JEANNE. YOU CAN SEE THE ELECTRICAL WORKERS BEHIND ME WORKING TO RESTORE POWER. AS FAR AS THE TREE GOES, WELL, THE CHIEF SAYS THERE WERE SOME BIG GUSTS OF WIND THIS MORNING. BUT IT’S POSSIBLE THE TREE WAS ALSO WEAKENED FROM PREVIOUS STORMS. THE TREE CRUSHED THE ROOF OF THE CAR WHEN IT CAME DOWN AROUND 9 A.M. IT HAPPENED NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF PELHAM AND STILES ROAD IN SALEM. NOW, ONE FIRE CREWS ARRIVED. THEY FOUND ONE PERSON TRAPPED IN THE VEHICLE. THE FIRE CHIEF SAYS IT WAS DIFFICULT TO GET THE DRIVER OUT, IN PART BECAUSE OF THE SIZE OF THE TREE AND ALSO BECAUSE SO MUCH OF THE CAR WAS CRUSHED. HE SAYS THE DRIVER COULDN’T SHED ANY LIGHT ON WHAT HAPPENED WHEN THE TREE FELL. HE WAS CONSCIOUS AND AWAKE, TALKING TO US THE WHOLE TIME, JUST SAID HE’S DRIVING AND ALL OF A SUDDEN A TREE FELL ON THE CAR. HE DIDN’T REALLY SEE IT. THE CHIEF’S AS AN ADDED CONCERN DURING THE EXTRACTION WAS THE FACT THAT THEY WERE DEALING WITH LIVE WIRES. BUT UTILITY CREWS GOT ON THE SCENE IN MINUTES TO HELP THE RESCUE CREWS. A SECOND CAR WAS ALSO DAMAGED AND HAD TO BE TOWED FROM THE SCENE. NO. ONE, WHEN THAT CAR WAS HURT, YOU’RE TAKEN ALIVE. LOOK, YOU CAN GET AN IDEA OF THE SIZE OF THAT TREE RIGHT THERE. THE UTILITY CREWS CONTINUING TO WORK TO RESTORE POWER TO THIS PLAZA. IT SHOULD BE BACK ON SHORTLY, WE ARE TOLD. REPORTING LIVE I
Falling tree strikes 2 cars on Salem road; 1 suffers significant injuries, fire chief says
Updated: 12:44 PM EST Feb 3, 2023
A tree fell onto a pair of cars in Salem on Friday morning, trapping a driver and bringing down live electrical wires.The tree crashed onto the road at the intersection of Pelham and Stiles roads before 9:30 a.m.>> See raw video from the sceneWhen fire crews arrived, they found a person trapped in one of the vehicles. Fire Chief Larry Best said it was difficult to get the driver out, in part because of the size of the tree, and also because so much of the car was crushed.He said the driver suffered serious injures and couldn’t shed any light on what was happening when the tree fell.”He’s conscious and awake talking to us the whole time,” Best said. “He just said he was driving, and all of a sudden, a tree fell on the car, and he didn’t really see it.”The chief said an added concern during the extraction was the fact that they were dealing with live wires. Utility crews were on the scene in minutes to help the rescue crews.Power was knocked out to a small area in the town.>> Resources: Emergency homeless shelters | Warming centers | Latest outage mapsNo one in the second car was hurt, but that vehicle had to be towed from the scene.Why the tree came down is not known, but winds are gusty Friday as an arctic air mass settles into the state. —
A tree fell onto a pair of cars in Salem on Friday morning, trapping a driver and bringing down live electrical wires.
The tree crashed onto the road at the intersection of Pelham and Stiles roads before 9:30 a.m.
>> See raw video from the scene
When fire crews arrived, they found a person trapped in one of the vehicles. Fire Chief Larry Best said it was difficult to get the driver out, in part because of the size of the tree, and also because so much of the car was crushed.
He said the driver suffered serious injures and couldn’t shed any light on what was happening when the tree fell.
“He’s conscious and awake talking to us the whole time,” Best said. “He just said he was driving, and all of a sudden, a tree fell on the car, and he didn’t really see it.”
The chief said an added concern during the extraction was the fact that they were dealing with live wires. Utility crews were on the scene in minutes to help the rescue crews.
Power was knocked out to a small area in the town.
>> Resources: Emergency homeless shelters | Warming centers | Latest outage maps
No one in the second car was hurt, but that vehicle had to be towed from the scene.
Why the tree came down is not known, but winds are gusty Friday as an arctic air mass settles into the state.
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