A woman was killed Sunday after a tree fell on her while she was hiking with her teenage son in Cupertino, California.
Vidyut Nautiyal, 44, was reportedly hiking with her son and several other boys and leaders with a local Boy Scouts troop, according to CBS Bay Area.
The father of a fellow hiker said several people, including her son, tried lifting the tree off her, to no avail. It happened on a popular trail in a park in Cupertino, Calif. https://t.co/wLMLPeVkWa
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) March 6, 2023
Surya is an adult who was on the hike with the woman, CBS Bay Area reported. He declined to give the outlet his last name.
“I heard some screams and stuff. It was about 40, 50 feet away from me,” Surya said, CBS Bay Area reported.
Local authorities said that the ground below the tree was saturated and could have caused the tree to fall.
“It’s just an unfortunate tragedy that you go out for a hike in a relatively calm morning and have this kind of thing happen,” MidPeninsula Regional Open Space District Chief Ranger Matt Anderson said, the outlet reported.
Surya and others in the group were able to lift the tree off Nautiyal slightly, but it was too late, CBS Bay Area reported. First responders attempted to save her life, but they were not successful. (RELATED: Man Plummets To Death While Hiking In Crawford Notch State Park With Wife)
“All Scouts are safe and there were no additional injuries. Our emergency response protocols and notifications are currently being followed and we appreciate privacy for the family and Scout unit as they are still being moved from the area and rejoined with their families,” Silicon Valley Monterey Bay Council Chief Scout Executive Eric Tarbox said, CBS Bay Area reported.