MIAMI (WSVN) - A couple and their 4-year-old grandson were left shaken up but unhurt after a large tree came crashing down on their SUV in a residential neighborhood in Miami.
7Skyforce HD hovered above the downed tree near Northwest 18th Avenue and 31st Street, just after 5:15 p.m., Thursday.
According to City of Miami Police, the tree fell on top of the white Nissan just after 4 p.m., crushing its roof.
“It’s as if we fainted for a little. We lost our minds,” said the woman who was inside the vehicle as she spoke through a translator.
A pair of grandparents and grandkid were in this SUV. All are okay. Minor injures. Stay clear of NW 18th Ave and 31st Street in #Miami. @wsvn pic.twitter.com/pK56N8mHHl
— Sheldon Fox-7 News (@fox_sheldon) March 28, 2019
Area resident Jorge Barrera said he was unloading groceries when the tree came down.
“Blat! It sounded real loud, like someone crashed into a tree,” he said.
Barrera knew it was time to help those inside the SUV.
“I come running out here, and I find the car underneath the tree,” he said.
Barrera and other neighbors got to work. He said reaching the victims proved to be a challenge.
“We couldn’t get them out of the car because the door wouldn’t open, so we had to break the window,” he said.
“Once people were helping us get out, I passed over my husband, and a man had pulled me out because I just wanted to see my grandson,” said the woman inside the vehicle.
“They got them out of the side window over here. They got the little kid out,” said Barrera.
“Once I saw he was OK, I just thanked God because we were born again,” said the woman inside the SUV.
The man who was inside the car suffered a laceration to his hand, but there were no other injuries
Just after 6:30 p.m., 7News cameras captured crews from Miami’s Department of Public Works hard at work sawing off tree branches in an attempt to remove the tree from the SUV, which sustained significant damage.
Authorities shut down Northwest 18th Avenue near the scene of the crash while city workers cut down the tree.
Florida Power & Light crews also responded to ensure no nearby power lines had been affected.
Area residents said this was an old tree.
“That tree should have been cut down a long time ago,” said Barrera.
What caused it to fall remains under investigation.
The SUV will likely be declared a total loss.
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