A Massachusetts family narrowly escaped injury on the Fourth of July when a large tree branch came crashing down onto their deck in the middle of a pool party. The incident happened in Merrimac, a small town in the northeastern corner of the state, during what had been a festive afternoon gathering with friends.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Surveillance camera footage captured the exact moment the limb fell. The video shows the branch coming down without warning, landing on the deck and leaving visible structural damage behind.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The family had invited friends over to celebrate the holiday. Then, abruptly, the weather changed. A sudden burst of strong wind and rain moved through Merrimac, and the tree branch gave way.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Homeowner Sara Vendshus described the shock of the impact. “It just thudded. I feel like I felt it. It was just like a loud thud. It shook me. It was just like boom,” she said. Guest Hudson Elwell was equally shaken: “It scared me because I could have died.”<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
No. Despite the force of the fall and the number of people gathered nearby, no one sustained injuries. The outcome could easily have been far worse.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The branch left behind damage to the fence, the gutters, and the barbecue grill. By Sunday, the tree limb had been cleared away, but the structural damage remained visible on the property.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The day after the incident, the family and their friends returned to the yard to clean up and begin assessing the damage. The mood mixed relief with the lingering adrenaline of what had nearly happened.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
No timeline for repairs has been publicly announced. The incident serves as a reminder of how quickly summer storm conditions can escalate \u2014 and how little warning they sometimes give.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
What happened? A Massachusetts family narrowly escaped injury on the Fourth of July when a large tree branch came crashing down onto their deck in the middle of a pool party. The incident happened in Merrimac, a small town in the northeastern corner of the state, during what had been a festive afternoon gathering with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1231,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37,47],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1232","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","category-world"],"yoast_head":"\n