A woman died on Thursday evening when a huge Christmas tree fell on her in Oudenaarde, Belgium. The tree suddenly blew over due to the strong wind. Although the precise circumstances have yet to be investigated.
The victim is a 63-year-old woman who was walking through the Oudenaarde Christmas market. Two other people were slightly injured.
Lifted up
Around 7 p.m. the Christmas tree suddenly fell to the ground. This can also be seen on webcam images of the square. According to the mayor, the emergency services arrived quickly on the scene. “Three people fell under the tree and were taken to hospital. One of the injured, a 63-year-old woman, was resuscitated, but died in hospital from her injuries.”
Frederik Vercruysse (44) was standing nearby when things went wrong. “We immediately took action. A nurse who was also there coordinated everything until the fire brigade arrived. I and other people pushed the top of the tree high, while others crawled under the tree to get the three women out. One of them was wounded in the leg, the other in the arm. The third victim was in worse condition.”
For the time being, the Oudenaarde Christmas market remains closed. At the end of November there were already problems with the Christmas tree, which is 20 meters high and weighs almost 5 tons. First, an incorrect specimen was delivered: the spruce turned out to have a double trunk. Later it turned out that the tree had sagged and was leaning. Then the city’s technical department had to be called in to straighten it out.
According to the mayor, the tree was ‘a bit tilted at first, but very sturdy’.
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2023-12-22 07:42:21
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