One witness said the falling tree sounded like “an explosion”
NEED TO KNOW
- A powerful storm in New Jersey caused a tree to fall on an Amazon delivery truck, trapping an occupant inside
- The person was rescued after a neighbor used a kitchen knife to cut the seatbelt and rescue the trapped individual
- The individual, who has not been publicly identified, survived but was injured when exiting the vehicle
A severe storm in Plainfield, N.J., caused a tree to crush a delivery truck and power outages.
On Friday, Aug. 7, a powerful storm knocked over a tree, which fell on top of an Amazon delivery truck, nearly splitting it in half. The tree fell just feet away from the windshield, as seen in a photo published by WHAS 11, trapping an occupant inside.
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Neighbors heard the tree crush the truck, and initially believed a house was hit. “It sounded pretty bad. I thought it actually hit the house when I heard it,” one witness said, per ABC 7. “It just sounded like an explosion pretty much.”
The driver was outside delivering a package when the tree fell, and he alerted the nearby neighbors that someone was inside. Shatia Winston explained to the outlet that a person who lived next door asked for help: “‘Oh, you guys have a knife or something so I can cut it?’ ” the neighbor said, per Winston.
“And I was like, ‘Oh okay, hold on,’ ” Winston said. “I got one of my kitchen knives, and he cut the seatbelt, and he got him out,” she said, adding that the occupant “was walking holding his stomach” after being rescued.
An Amazon spokesperson called the incident “scary” and thanked those who assisted, according to a statement shared with ABC 7. “We’re grateful that the Delivery Service Partner drivers are safe and to everyone who responded at the scene.”
The tree caused the power lines to fall too, leaving several neighbors without power. The tree was removed on Saturday, Aug. 8.
PEOPLE reached out to Amazon for comment.
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