Simon Lemus (49) died after he became trapped beneath fronds in a palm tree

[blighted star]

It never would've occurred to me that a palm tree could just engulf someone like this






https://www.eastidahonews.com/2018/0...-in-palm-tree/

California tree trimmer dies after becoming trapped in palm tree
Published at 2:18 pm, September 7, 2018


Los Angeles County, CA (KTLA) ? Authorities recovered the body of a 49-year-old tree trimmer who died after becoming trapped inside a palm tree outside a Hacienda Heights home on Thursday, officials said.


Simon Lemus? teenage daughter was on the job with him when she his heard screams for help, his family said. She ran over to discover her father had become lodged deep inside a mass of dried fronds at the base of the tree?s canopy.

Lemus had been trimming trees more than half his life and worked with a local company. But on Thursday, he was doing a side job to help out a friend, his family said.

?Receiving news about my dad?s passing at this accident is something that?s very sad for our family,? his son, Simon Lemus Jr., said through a translator. ?But he passed away doing what he loved most.?



Officers responded to the scene on the 15400 block of Garo Street at about 4 p.m., said Vanessa Lozano with the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

Aerial video showed two fire personnel had ascended a ladder to reach the palm fronds about 40 feet off the ground. They were pulling them apart and working to access deeper inside the tree, where Lemus was trapped.

By 5:15 p.m. they had strapped his limp body to the trunk of the tree and were working to get him down. Around 5:45 p.m., firefighters told KTLA he had been pronounced dead.

It appeared Lemus had become stuck under a tangle of dry palm fronds, which can collapse quickly and become very heavy. Coroner?s officials have yet to determine a cause of death.


Leonel Granados, another tree trimmer who?d worked alongside Lemus for decades, said he was experienced and had proper safety equipment.

?I know he?s a very strong guy, so I don?t know what happened inside there,? Granados said. ?It?s not the first one; he had trimmed, I think, thousands of palms.?

Lemus? family remembered him as a loving husband, father and grandfather. Simon Jr. described him as a religious and charismatic man with a strong work ethic.

?First and foremost, he was a person who loved God,? his son said. ?He was the best kind of guy, admirable, always smiling.?

[terps1990]

How sad. Rip Simon.

[Non_Saepe]

Damn, this HAS to be a first. I can't even compute.

[blighted star]

Damn, this HAS to be a first. I can't even compute.

Seriously. I thought the only risk palms presented was falling on you in a storm or dropping coconuts (depending on what species they are, of course).

I also thought the only risks in tree lopping were falls & harness or equipment accidents - a collapse like this was just not something I ever considered possible. I look at palm trees in a whole new way now

[raisedbywolves]

Seriously. I thought the only risk palms presented was falling on you in a storm or dropping coconuts (depending on what species they are, of course).

I also thought the only risks in tree lopping were falls & harness or equipment accidents - a collapse like this was just not something I ever considered possible. I look at palm trees in a whole new way now

Some of those fronds have wicked saw teeth on them that look like a sawtooth shark. I had one fall and cut the entire left side of my face once. I never knew palms could be dangerous until I moved to Florida. I didn't know until this story that you could suffocate in them.

[blighted star]

Oh yeah, I forgot about the sharp ones. I swear, I'm going to side eye palm trees from now on like they're all potentially triffids or giant venus flytraps in disguise

[Olivia]

His ME entry

http://mec.lacounty.gov/case-detail/...ber=2018-06911

[DiaDeLosMuertos]

Damn, this HAS to be a first. I can't even compute.

I am from SoCal and this happens more frequently than you think. This is probably the 5th death the same exact way in the last 4-5 years iirc. There are 2 problems with the palms and tree companies out there- people don't hire licensed arborists and they wait until the dead fronds are so out of control at the bottom that they become dangerous.

[Boston Babe 73]

I am from SoCal and this happens more frequently than you think. This is probably the 5th death the same exact way in the last 4-5 years iirc. There are 2 problems with the palms and tree companies out there- people don't hire licensed arborists and they wait until the dead fronds are so out of control at the bottom that they become dangerous.

I see so many trees overcome by dead fronds and it blows my mind since they could fall and hurt someone in high winds. We always have those large suckers in the streets after a hard wind. You would think there would be some kind of law on the books that makes owners clear them every so often like they do with brush clearance to prevent wild fires.

[blighted star]

I'm still stunned to find out how dangerous they are. It's like the moment I discovered beavers could kill people

[Boston Babe 73]

I'm still stunned to find out how dangerous they are. It's like the moment I discovered beavers could kill people

They scare the crap out of me when it's windy. I'm out walking dogs sometimes during that weather and they'll be falling all around me. In addition to them potentially falling on people/cars, they could take down power lines. They look small from down on the ground, but they're pretty big and bulky:

http://amp.kcra.com/article/palm-fro...itions/6254822

[Non_Saepe]

I am from SoCal and this happens more frequently than you think. This is probably the 5th death the same exact way in the last 4-5 years iirc. There are 2 problems with the palms and tree companies out there- people don't hire licensed arborists and they wait until the dead fronds are so out of control at the bottom that they become dangerous.

So crazy. I have never heard of this before. (Not that I would, not a lot of palm trees in Dayton. We do have like six in one of the theatre lobby's downtown. They are tall as shit. I have no idea how they keep them alive but I'm going there Saturday and will be on high alert. I'm on to you, palms.)