Skip to Content

Hiker Killed By Giant Redwood Tree On Christmas Eve

Share The Article

Last Updated


A 28-year-old tourist from Minnesota was killed on Christmas Eve when a giant redwood tree fell on him while he was hiking in Northern California's Muir Woods National Monument Park, authorities said on Thursday.

The monument is in Marin County and approximately 15 miles north of San Francisco.
 
Subhradeep Dutta, 28, was walking on a trail when the tree fell, the Marin County Sheriff's Office said. He was visiting from Edina, Minnesota.
tree fell

The tree that fell on Dutta was over 200-feet tall, measuring 4 feet in diameter. 

The freak incident occurred about 4:30 p.m. in the national park about 16 miles north of San Francisco, the coroner's office said in a statement.

Emergency medical services were called at approximately 4:38 p.m. and first responders found Dutta beneath the tree. Dutta suffered “severe traumatic injuries” and was pronounced dead on the scene at 5:01 p.m. 

tree kills man in california

A woman was also injured by falling debris and was taken to the hospital for treatment, officials said.

Officials said the tree fell following a series of winter rainstorms over the past two weeks.

In the winter of 2016 and 2017, Muir was closed after heavy rainstorms slammed the San Francisco Bay Area, causing up to 12 towering coast redwoods to topple, officials said.

 

Follow us on facebook below for all the latest travel news, hacks and videos.