TROUTDALE, Ore. — Authorities said two people are dead after being struck by falling tree limbs Saturday morning in the Portland metro area.
Around 10:45 a.m., Portland police said a large branch fell and struck two men at a homeless camp near Northeast Sandy Boulevard and Northeast 118th Avenue.
One of them was killed. The other was taken to a local hospital, and police did not have an update on his condition.
Police said the tree was "severely deteriorated" and an arborist had been called in to help ensure it's safe.
Then around 11:15 a.m., a teenager was struck and killed by a falling tree limb at Thousand Acres Park, according to the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office (MCSO).
On Monday, the MCSO identified the teenager as 14-year-old Christopher Kelly. He was a freshman at Central Catholic High School.
Kelly was with a group of volunteers planting trees at the 1,400-acre park, also called Sandy River Delta, located at the mouth of the Columbia River Gorge near Troutdale.
"Our thoughts are with this young man’s family during this tragic time," said Undersheriff Nicole Morrisey O’Donnell. "This weighs heavy on all of us in the first responder community."
KGW's Joe Raineri said wind speeds were not particularly high around the time the branches fell down.
Earlier this month, arborist Dash Schenck with The Davey Tree Expert Company told KGW there has been an increase in fallen trees and branches this year due to several factors.
“The lack of water we've got and then that heat back in the summertime really stressed the trees out … and so even in light weather like this with just a little bit of rain, the conditions are just right that trees can break or fall," he said.
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