Child hit by falling tree limb in Helen

  • A worker rescues a tube from under one of the downed trees. (Photo/Stephanie Hill)
    A worker rescues a tube from under one of the downed trees. (Photo/Stephanie Hill)
  • Workers were busy clearing the trees that fell into the river in Helen. (Photo/Stephanie Hill)
    Workers were busy clearing the trees that fell into the river in Helen. (Photo/Stephanie Hill)
  • Because of the downed trees, tubers had to get out of the river just before the bridge on Edelweiss Strasse. (Photo/Stephanie Hill)
    Because of the downed trees, tubers had to get out of the river just before the bridge on Edelweiss Strasse. (Photo/Stephanie Hill)
  • A tree fell at Unicoi Hill Park and hit a parked car during the storm. (Photo/Stephanie Hill)
    A tree fell at Unicoi Hill Park and hit a parked car during the storm. (Photo/Stephanie Hill)
  • Part of the large tree that fell and hit two cars at Unicoi Hill Park. (Photo/Stephanie Hill)
    Part of the large tree that fell and hit two cars at Unicoi Hill Park. (Photo/Stephanie Hill)
  • One of the vehicles damaged by the falling tree. (Photo/Stephanie Hill)
    One of the vehicles damaged by the falling tree. (Photo/Stephanie Hill)
  • A tree fell at Unicoi Hill Park and hit a parked car during the storm. (Photo/Stephanie Hill)
    A tree fell at Unicoi Hill Park and hit a parked car during the storm. (Photo/Stephanie Hill)

A 4-year old child was struck by a tree limb while tubing the river in Helen after a storm rolled through Thursday, July 18.

The child was with her parents, said Helen Police Chief Brian Stephens.

“They heard the cracking, looked up and a limb fell and struck the child in the head,” Stephens said. “(There was) nothing serious. She wasn’t transported. Paramedics said she might need some stitches.”

The girl and her family are from Summerville, South Carolina, and were in town for a day trip, Stephens said.

The sudden storm caused two trees to fall into the Chattahoochee River behind the Helen Festhalle. The bridge on Edelweiss Strasse was closed as workers cleared the tree from the river. Tubers were stopped just before the bridge, and buses from both local tubing companies picked them up.

Besides the river, two cars in the Unicoi Hill Park parking lot were damaged when a tree fell on them, Stephens said. There were no injuries reported.

Stephens said he is thankful that there were no serious injuries. The situation could have been worse if it happened during the weekend when even more people are tubing on the river, he said.