‘I think we’re dying:’ Couple seriously injured after large tree falls on moving car in Douglas
A Douglas couple suffered serious injuries after a large tree fell on their moving car on Thursday afternoon.
She was yelling, ‘help, help, help.’ She was screaming, “I think we are dying,” said Danielle Patterson, a neighbor.
The couple who are in their 50′s were almost to their home on South Street, in Douglas when a large tree fell on their car shortly after 3 p.m.
Patterson lives nearby where the accident occurred and heard the screams.
“She had to pull him out of the car because the car was catching on fire,” said Patterson.
Catherine Thomas woke up to the same tree hitting her house.
“I woke up to flashing and screaming and yelling, ‘Get out of the car. It’s on fire. It’s on fire,” said Catherine Thomas the homeowner.
She heard the couple in the car but was trapped herself. “I couldn’t see anything because the trees covering all the windows and I couldn’t come out of the house because of all the wires,” said Thomas. “My T.V. was flashing and things were sparking out here, so it was terrifying.”
Thomas was sleeping in the front room opposite from where the tree landed damaging one side of the roof. When she was finally able to come out with her dog, Mando, she knew immediately which tree went.
“That tree was flagged to come down three years ago when I bought this house and then they took the red flag off and they never cut it down,” said Thomas.
The building inspector says the house is safe to stay in.
Patterson said the man who was driving suffered serious head injuries.
Both people in the car were taken to the UMass Trauma Center with serious injuries.
National Grid, Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR), and a tree service also responded to assist in the removal of the tree and restore services to the area.
The incident is currently being investigated by the Douglas Police Department.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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