A morning Easter egg hunt in a forest outside Satrupholm, near the northern German city of Flensburg, took a sudden and fatal turn on Sunday when a gust of wind brought a tree down on the group, according to Flensburg police.
The accident happened around 11 am on April 5, killing three people. Around 50 residents and staff of the SterniPark welfare organization, a state-funded body that supports pregnant women, parents and children, were in the woods searching for eggs when the roughly 30-meter tree fell.
“Due to strong gusts of wind, a tree approximately 30 meters high [around 98 feet] fell on a group of people,” police said. A 16-year-old girl and a 21-year-old woman died at the scene, and the woman’s 10-month-old daughter, airlifted to a hospital in Kiel with life-threatening injuries, died later. An 18-year-old woman was airlifted with serious injuries, and several others suffered minor wounds.
The German weather service had warned of stormy conditions across the north over the weekend, with gusts of 55 to 65 kilometers per hour and stronger bursts possible in exposed spots.
“A falling tree brought a terrible end to the joyful Easter egg hunt,” SterniPark said, adding that it was “deeply shocked” by the “tragic accident.” The investigation into the exact cause was ongoing, and the victims’ names had not been released.
Sources
- 3 Killed, Including Baby, After Tree Falls on Them During Easter Egg Hunt
- Three killed by falling tree in German forest
