A teaching assistant has described herself as 'lucky to be alive' after a falling tree struck her during Storm Boelo, leaving her with a concussion and a bleeding head wound.
Nina Lunn, 42, was walking through Allestree Park in Derby on Sunday when the storm sent part of a tree crashing down on her. The impact knocked her to the ground, causing a concussion and a bleeding head wound.
Storm Brings Widespread Disruption
The weekend saw rough weather across the nation, with 838,700 properties hit by power cuts during Storm Boelo and its predecessor, Storm Austen. A man in his 20s was pronounced dead after a tree fell onto a moving car in north London. Police were called to Hollis Road in Finchley at 12.40pm on Sunday afternoon, and the man was pronounced dead at the scene.
On Sunday morning, a 60-year-old man died after being hit by a falling tree in Dumfries and Galloway, western Scotland, at around 10.30am. Two women were also taken to hospital after being struck by another falling tree in Aberfeldy, Perth and Kinross.
'Lucky to Be Here'
Speaking to Sell Us Your Story, Nina said: "The hospital staff were quite shocked and even said to me 'wow, you're lucky to be here'. The paramedics were quite worried because my blood pressure was very high."
She added: "It just shows how dangerous the weather can be. If I had been a foot in either direction the tree would have smashed right on top of me."
Nina said she went out for a quick birthday weekend stroll before travelling to Yorkshire to celebrate with family. It was while she was talking to a friend on the phone that a sudden gust of wind made a tree she had just walked past snap in half.
Tree 'Snapped in Half'
She recalled: "I had my AirPods in as I was walking along a path when I heard a really loud crack. I spun around to see what it was but it was too late and the whole tree had come down on top of me.
"The strong wind was so powerful the tree literally snapped in half in the middle and it crashed down on me. My teeth shattered together. Then I could just feel the blood dripping down my face. I panicked."
The force of the blow sent Nina's AirPods flying and left her desperately calling a friend for help. After using her fleece sleeve to stem the bleeding, a woman pushing a pram came to her aid.
"Had it happened 30 seconds earlier, the tree could have got the mum and her baby and I was so close to being completely wiped out. I feel genuinely lucky to be alive," Nina said.
Hospital Treatment and Recovery
Following the incident, Nina was rushed to Royal Derby Hospital, where doctors glued her head wound shut before she was discharged. She returned the next day suffering concussion, swelling, blurred vision and high blood pressure.
Nina, who has a 13-year-old son Flynn, stated: "The swelling on my face and the left side of my head is quite bad. I've still got headaches and some blurry vision but each day I'm getting better. Two days after the incident I went to look at the tree again and was quite frightened. It could have easily have killed me."
