Tree trimmer, 43, DIES after getting stuck in 50ft palm tree

An Arizona histrion trimmer was killed aft becoming trapped nether a dense canopy of thenar fronds portion trimming an unkempt, 50-foot thenar tree.

Jamie Yepiz, 43, was pruning the unmaintained thenar histrion connected Saturday successful West Phoenix erstwhile the tree's thick, dormant leaves abruptly collapsed astir him, pinning him successful place.

The Phoenix Fire Department responded to the 'chaotic scene' lone to find Yepiz - an experienced histrion trimmer with 12 years successful the assemblage - around the trunk of the tree, stuck among a clump of thenar histrion fronds. 

Officials judge helium was knocked unconscious by parts of the tree.

'He was an adept astatine what helium did,' Patricia Perez, Yepiz's ex-wife and parent of his children, told WTSP. 'I conscionable don't cognize what happened.' 

Rescuers reportedly had to usage a chainsaw to escaped the 43-year-old father-of-six aft helium spent astir an hr trapped nether the thenar tree's skirt, Fox10 Phoenix reported.

Despite being freed, Yepiz was unresponsive and rapidly rushed to Banner - University Medical Center, conscionable 10 miles from the scene, wherever helium aboriginal died from injuries related to suffocation.

The Centers for Disease Control says suffocation tin hap if histrion trimmers chopped oregon propulsion connected dormant thenar fronds, which are heavy, that illness and encase them, crushing their chest. 

Yepiz had been moving connected the histrion for astir 3 hours, earlier helium became stuck, Fox10 reported, adding that the soaring thenar histrion 'had been untouched for astir 50-years' anterior to the seasoned trimmer's services. 

Richard Chard, a neighbour of the location that Yepiz was moving for, said helium witnessed the chaotic scene.

'All hellhole broke loose,' Chard told Fox5.

Chard said helium knew determination was thing earnestly incorrect erstwhile firefighters pulled the histrion trimmer out.

'When they got him connected the gurney it didn't look good,' Chard said. 'He wasn't moving astatine all.'

Tree trimming expert, Scott Cebulski, weighed successful connected the heartbreaking mishap claiming that trimming palms tin beryllium highly dangerous.

'Palm trees are astir apt the astir unsafe histrion that you tin trim,' Cebulski, proprietor of Trees-R-Us and Arizona Trim A Tree, told Fox10. 'You could beryllium talking 250 pounds per foot.'

Cebulski emphasized the 'high risk' progressive successful the profession, adding that aft 48 years moving successful the manufacture helium has 'had 20 friends ... 18 friends, killed.'

The tragic incidental unfolded conscionable days earlier the seasoned trimmer was to commencement a caller occupation successful location remodeling Perez told WTSP, adding that the occupation whitethorn person been 'too much' for him to handle. 

'That's the bittersweet part, due to the fact that it was truthful much, but helium told the man that hired him, "Oh no, I got this. I tin bash this,"' Perez said. 'I deliberation helium was acceptable to bash thing better, thing easier due to the fact that it was hard work.'

To marque matters worse, Yepiz's mishap happened connected Mexican Mother's Day - May 10. A autochthonal of Sonora, Mexico, Yepiz's household said the 'hardest telephone they had to make' was to his mother.

Yepiz leaves down 2 daughters and 4 measurement children 'he raised arsenic his own.' 

'Jaime was a hard worker, kind, and loved by all,' a GoFundMe fundraiser organized by his step-daughter, Kayla Perez, reads.

The fundraiser was organized to assistance rise funds to nonstop the 'hard worker' backmost to his hometown 'so helium tin beryllium laid to remainder and his parents tin accidental their last goodbyes.' The run raised implicit $10,000 towards its $18,000 extremity arsenic of Tuesday morning.