A young trick-or-treater in Westchester County was left with broken bones after a tree fell on top of her, neighbors said, amid powerful winds that came as part of a Halloween storm.
The young girl, around 9 or 10 years old, was getting her goodies in her New Rochelle neighborhood around 6:30 p.m., as the streets were filled with other youngsters celebrating Halloween and donning their outfits. The massive tree suddenly snapped due to strong wind gusts, pinning her underneath.
Dozens of other children and parents looked on as the girl screamed out in pain, witnesses saying they could hear her say how scared she was to her mother who was right beside her.
Crews at the scene had to use chainsaws to help break the tree apart in sections, while firefighters were asking the girl to wiggle her feet, according to a neighbor.
The child was rushed to a nearby hospital. Her condition is not known, but neighbors said the injuries did not appear to be life-threatening, with a few broken bones.
Neighbors told NBC New York that the tree was basically dead and had been ready to fall for years. Some said they had previously reported it multiple times to the city and Con Edison, as the tree is immediately next to power lines. According to the neighbors, the issue was being looked into but no action had yet been taken.
Hours after the incident, the tree had been removed and the street was cleared, with just the trunk remaining.
Elsewhere around the area, there were a slew of reports of downed trees all over New Jersey. In the town of Wall, a tree fell and took down three utility poles, bringing wires down with them. In Rockland County, there was a report of a tree that had fallen onto a house.
All the downed trees and wires led to more than 50,000 customers across the tri-state without power shortly after midnight, a number that is sure to continue rising.
Photo Credit: NBC New York
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