A married couple tragically died, leaving behind five children, when a redwood tree fell on their car as they were driving in California.
Jessica and Jake Woodruff were driving on Thursday along Highway 199 near Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park when the 175-foot-tall tree came crashing down onto their car, the California Highway Patrol said.
The couple had left their home in Yreka, where they live with their five children, to head up the coast on a special getaway to celebrate Jessica’s 45th birthday.
“This was a shocking and unexpected event, and the tragedy of this accident makes it difficult to accept as real,” family friend Amanda Maffei wrote on a GoFundMe page set up to help the couple’s five orphaned children.
(GoFundMe)
“These children are facing the devastating reality of what was just ripped from their lives in a split second,” Maffei added. “Those of you who know this family, know how tight-knit they are, and their lives will forever be changed.”
Authorities are investigating what caused the tree to fall on a pleasant day with no wind.
“We have trees everywhere. It’s in the middle of the redwoods. It’s just old growth and we have no idea why the tree fell. It was Mother Nature,” California Highway Patrol Officer Brandy Gonzalez told SFGate.
“I’ve been on the department for 19 years and I’ve been in this area 12 to 13 years and it’s very unusual,” Gonzales added. “We’ve had trees fall down and cars make contact, but this kind of incident is very unusual.”
Jake and Jessica are survived by their five children, Megan, Evan, Casey, Allie, and Chelsea.
The GoFundMe campaign for the family had raised over $140,000 as of Tuesday morning.