Update: According to the Hampden District Attorney’s Office, the operator is a 23-year-old mother from Winstead, CT who was transported to Baystate Medical Center with serious injuries.
SOUTHWICK, Mass. (WWLP) – The Southwick community coming to grips with tragedy Friday night after an infant died when a tree fell onto a car on Route 57.
The Hampden DA’s office said the strong winds Friday was the cause. A similar incident also happened in Westfield to a family with an infant. Police said everyone in that car is expected to be ok. 22News spoke with those that called this a freak accident.
Friday’s bitter cold, and strong winds, proved to be deadly. An infant was dead, and a 23 year old mother from Winstead, CT was seriously injured. “A massive wind gust came out and the tree was so huge, it immediately flattened the vehicle, just a complete freak accident,” Brett Colson Jr, Southwick.
“It was just an awful situation, just something you couldn’t predict in a million years, just a terrible tragedy,” Colson adds. The remaining parts of the tree can still be seen that fell onto the car and can just see its enormous size, with the amount of debris scattered on both sides of the road.
And within hours, a similar incident happened in Westfield, a tree fell onto a car on Pochassic Road. Two adults and 1 infant were taken to the hospital, but they are expected to be ok.
“The only thing I can compare this to was the October storm,” said Fred Lowenthal of Sparky’s services. Local tree services, getting multiple calls for fallen trees across western Massachusetts.
“We’ve had five phone calls for trees that were either on houses or vehicles, the tree’s water system is freezing up and causing the trees to be extra brittle,” explained Lowenthal.
And these hazardous conditions left tragedy in its wake and the community in shock. Lowenthal expresses, “it’s an absolute tragedy and I feel for the family.”
Both incidents are being investigated and we will provide further detail as soon as more information becomes available.