Shocking CCTV footage has captured the moment a dog walker in Bath narrowly escaped injury when a massive tree branch suddenly crashed down beside her.
Yuan Zhang was walking her cockapoo in Locksbrook Cemetery, Lower Weston, on the evening of Tuesday, May 26, when she noticed a cracking sound coming from a nearby tree. Alerted by the noise, she immediately picked up her dog and quickly exited the cemetery moments before the branch fell.
Speaking to SomersetLive, Yuan expressed how her unusual decision not to wear headphones that day might have saved her life. “I usually wear headphones on walks but didn’t that evening because it had been raining,” she said. “When I heard the cracking noise near the tree, I knew a branch was about to fall. I grabbed my dog and left just in time.”
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Caught on CCTV from the New Crown Inn across the road, the incident startled many nearby. Charlotte Symonds, the pub manager, described the sounds as resembling “gunshots” and called the experience “terrifying.” She added that the situation could have been much worse if anyone had been passing underneath the tree at the time.
“I heard loud noises like stones hitting the window, which then sounded like gunfire,” said Charlotte. “Thankfully, my partner and I went outside and saw the branch when it had already fallen. An off-duty ambulance crew and police quickly arrived to manage the situation.”
Yuan was visibly shaken but unharmed. She stressed how fortunate she was to avoid injury from the falling branch. “Though the CCTV makes it look like I was very close, I was about a meter away when it happened,” Yuan shared. “My dog was scared, but thankfully we were safe.”
Councillor Manda Rigby of Bath and North East Somerset Council confirmed that their tree maintenance team responded rapidly and identified signs of structural weakness in the branch that were not apparent during previous inspections. She explained that recent extreme weather — intense heat followed by heavy rain — likely contributed to the unexpected failure.
“Regular maintenance and inspection are conducted on the approximately 35,000 trees owned by the council to ensure public safety,” Cllr Rigby said. “This was an unforeseeable event, but we have now taken further safety measures at Locksbrook Cemetery.”
The incident serves as a stark reminder of the importance of vigilance and quick reactions in potentially dangerous situations. Yuan’s attentiveness and swift decision-making undoubtedly prevented a tragedy.