A camper at a Big4 holiday park Healesville near Melbourne has been killed by a falling tree branch.
The Age newspaper reports that a 44-year-old man was alone in his tent at the Big4 Yarra Valley Park Lane Holiday Park when the branch came down early this morning.
“No other people were injured during the incident,” a police spokeswoman said.
An SES spokeswoman told The Age that the branch was roughly six metres long and about half a metre wide. It reportedly crushed the tent and left the man pinned down.
WorkSafe investigators arrived at the park this afternoon.
Big4’s Josh Hellings said the park had a ‘thorough maintenance program’ and extended his sympathies to the man’s family and friends.
“Sadly there was an accident at our park this morning that resulted in the passing of one of our guests,” he said in a statement. “We’re working with the police to determine exactly what has happened.”
Mr Hellings said the park had a strong safety record and had a thorough maintenance program as the safety of guests was its highest priority.“We express our sympathies to the family and friends who have been affected, and will provide support to them as fully as possible at this distressing time.”
Police will prepare a report for the coroner.
The latest tragedy is another terrible reminder of the risk that trees can pose to cmapers.
In 2019, a group of campers were lucky to escape with their lives after a huge gum tree branch fell across their campsite at Twin Knobs Beach at Cobram in Victoria.
In 2016, a man was killed on a camping trip after a large gum tree fell on him in the Conondale National Park in Queensland.
A few years before that, a woman was killed when a tree branch fell on her at a campsite at Boorhaman, north of Wangaratta in Victoria. Another camper — a woman in her 40s — was also trapped under the branches of the red gum tree, but was pulled to safety and escaped with minor injuries.
Similarly, a couple staying near the Bluewater Caravan Park in Townsville a few years suffered serious injuries after a tree fell on their caravan.
And one grey nomad couple even had a tree fall on them as they drove along the Glenelg Highway in Victoria.
My sympathy to his family
so sad to hear. Yes neighbour was in hospital 6 months when a branch fell on their camper many years ago. I would rather lose my money than take an unsafe site. It pays to ask to see the site before paying.