Jul 29, 2009 7:26 pm US/Eastern
Falling Branch In Central Park Leaves Man Critical
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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A falling tree limb struck a man in Central Park on July 29, 2009.
CBS
A man walking in Central Park Wednesday morning was hospitalized after he was struck by a falling tree limb, CBS 2 HD has learned.
Police say the victim, 33-year-old Sasha Blair Goldensohn, was hit in the back of the head near West 63rd Street and West Drive just after 8 a.m. The impact from the broken limb, which fell about 20 feet, caused severe bleeding and left the man unconscious.
Rescuers found Goldensohn in cardiac arrest when they arrived. At the hospital, the family said the found bleeding on the brain and a collapsed lung.
Goldensohn is a researcher at Google studying voice recognition. Relatives say his wife is at his side while their two small children are at home.
An official with NYC Parks & Recreation said the limb is from a Pin Oak Tree, and was approximately 4 inches in diameter.
The scene was such a mess it took nearly two hours for crews to clean up the debris and blood from the pavement.
"They take such good care of these trees, I'm very surprised it happened, but we've had such bad storms," said Roberta Kimmel, who was walking near the area where the accident occurred.
Central Park forestry crews are inspecting the rest of the tree for more damage.
Parkgoer Kailyn Fox was walking with toddler son and admitted hearing the news made her nervous, especially for her child's safety.
"I'm pretty concerned because if he got hit with that thing, he probably wouldn't be OK, he probably wouldn't recover," she said.
Goldensohn is the son of famous journalist Gwenda Blair, a Columbia professor and biographer of Donald Trump and Jessica Savich.
CBS 2's Ross Palombo contributed to this report.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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