Woman killed by falling palm tree in Tiberias

A woman, 66, died Sunday, after being crushed by a palm tree in a freak accident on a lakeside boardwalk in the northern city of Tiberias, officials said.

The tree was toppled by high winds in the area, a United Hatzalah ambulance service medic said.

Wind gusts of up to 70 kilometers per hour (43 mph) were recorded on Sunday in the city, Channel 12 news said.

According to officials, the woman was walking on Tiberias’s promenade along the shore of the Sea of Galilee shortly before she was killed. The incident occurred next to a Chabad House compound in the city.

“When we reached the promenade, we saw the wounded woman lying on the lawn trapped under a large tree trunk that collapsed and hit her,” a Magen David Adom medic said.

The medic said the woman was declared dead at the scene after no vital signs were seen.

There was no immediate comment from the police on the incident, but it is expected to investigate the matter.