Crime & Safety

Tree Trimmer Killed While Working Atop Tall Palm Tree In South Bay

The fatal accident occurred Monday at home in Bonita, police said.

The fatal accident occurred on the 3600 block of Bonita Verde Drive in Bonita, CA.
The fatal accident occurred on the 3600 block of Bonita Verde Drive in Bonita, CA. (Renee Schiavone/Patch)

BONITA, CA — A tree trimmer was killed Monday when palm fronds collapsed onto him as he was working to remove them from the top of a tall tree in a neighborhood near Chula Vista Golf Course, authorities reported.

The fatal accident occurred shortly before 11:30 a.m. in the front yard of a home in the 3600 block of Bonita Verde Drive in Bonita, according to the Chula Vista Fire Department.

When emergency personnel arrived, the 39-year-old victim's co-workers were trying to free him from the heavy foliage that had pinned him to the palm tree about 50 feet off the ground, CVFD Capt. Josh Sanders said.

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When firefighters got to the trapped man via a large ladder, they discovered that he had succumbed to his injuries, Sanders said. It took them about a half-hour to free his body from the fronds, the captain said.

The victim's name was withheld pending family notification.

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