It took fire crews a couple of hours to free the woman

Jul 28, 2015 12:21 GMT  ·  By

This past Monday, just after midnight, a not-to-be-ignored tree tipping the scale at about 5,000 pounds (nearly 2,300 kilograms), give or take one or two squirrels, came tumbling down in Great Neck, Long Island. 

The tree landed smack on top of a house, fell through the roof, leaving a great big hole behind it, and only stopped with a thud when hitting a bed. The bed's owner, an unnamed woman, was sleeping in it at the time.

The tree didn't cause the woman any serious or life-threatening injuries. It did, however, pin her to the bed, making it nearly impossible for her to move. The woman started screaming and was heard by her neighbors.

Soon enough, crews with the Vigilant Fire Company of Great Neck came to the woman's rescue and got to work trying to free her from under the massive tree keeping her captive in her bed.

“Just after midnight, as most were sleeping soundly in their beds the dedicated volunteer members of the Vigilant Fire Company responded to a call for a person trapped in her bedroom under a tree that had fallen on her house.”

“Vigilant EMS members responded and Vigilant Tower Ladder 8324 was 'special called' to the scene to assist with size up and removal of the tree,” the Vigilant Fire Company of Great Neck wrote in a statement.

Freeing the woman was hard work, her rescuers say

It took the fire crews who saved the woman a couple of hours to remove the tree just enough to get to her and pull her to safety. They got help from paramedics, who kept a close eye on the woman to make sure that she was OK.

Since simply grabbing hold of the tree and pulling it aside was out of the question, rescuers had to use hydraulic lifts to safely remove the trunk and the branches from atop the bed and the victim.

Once saved, the woman was rushed to the nearest hospital. Here, doctors examined her and ruled out internal damage. Being in a stable condition and not severely injured, the woman was soon discharged.

In an interview, police investigators who assisted with this case said that, when the tree landed on her house, the woman was sleeping on her side. Apparently, this kept her safe from any serious injuries.

The woman didn't suffer any serious injuries
The woman didn't suffer any serious injuries

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Tree falls without warning, lands on woman sleeping in her bed
The woman didn't suffer any serious injuries
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