Mother of the bride  killed when 100ft tree fell on California wedding as the bridal party posed for photos: Harrowing video emerges of the aftermath of tragedy that left five others injured 

  • The mother of a California bride was killed when she was struck by a falling tree
  • A 100-foot tall eucalyptus fell around 4.30pm Saturday in Whittier, California
  • The group was in Penn Park taking photos when the tree suddenly fell on the group, injuring five in addition to the one fatality   
  • A four-year-old girl remains in critical condition due to severe head trauma
  • Rescuers used chainsaws to pull out guests trapped under the branches
  • Penn Park remains closed as an investigation is underway, with officials believing the ongoing drought in the state may have caused the tragic accident 

By Clemence Michallon For Dailymail.com

Published: 01:06 EST, 19 December 2016 | Updated: 10:15 EST, 19 December 2016

The mother of a bride was killed on Saturday after a 100-foot tree fell on top of a wedding party in southern California, trapping guests and injuring five individuals.

A eucalyptus toppled around 4.30pm Saturday in Whittier's Penn Park, where the bridal party had gathered to take photos during the weekend nuptials. 

Among the five people were injured was a four-year-old girl who remains in critical condition due to severe head trauma.

Footage from the incident taken by multiple bystanders and uploaded to social media shows rescuers giving CPR to the bride's mother, whose name has not yet been released by authorities. 

She can be seen lying down on the ground in her dress for the event as three men try to revive her. 

One of the eyewitnesses, who was in the park for a quinceañera, said she saw the bride screaming after the tree fell while standing over her unconscious mother.

Scroll down for video 

Rescuers used chainsaws to pull out wedding guests who became trapped under a fallen tree on Saturtday

Footage shows rescuers giving CPR to the mother of the bride after the accident, who was later declared dead (above)

Photographs of a bride, whose wedding party is believed to have been caught up in the tragedy, were posted on Instagram shortly before the tree fell

Guests can be seen in their wedding attired sitting down in the park after the tragedy, while rescuers worked to pull out guests from under the tall eucalyptus

A victim was taken away on a stretcher after the 100-foot tree toppled. Five people were injured in the tragedy

Rescuers (pictured) worked throughout the evening to pull victims from under the tree (pictured), cutting branches with chainsaws

Members of the rescue team took away the victim on a stretcher. They were seen working tirelessly at the scene trying to assist those injured in the tragedy

Rescuers transported a large chunk from the eucalyptus as they tried to help those trapped underneath the 100-foot-tree in Penn Park

One person has died and a four-year-old girl was left in critical condition with severe head trauma. Two members of the wedding party are pictured walking away from the scene

Wedding guests were seen showing their injuries to fire department personnel after the tall tree collapsed

People close to the wedding party were pictured embracing one another while firefighters worked at the scene on Saturday evening

Photographer Gilbert Duran posted a video on Facebook after the incident saying he had helped pulled a woman from under the tree. Duran said it was the mother of the bride, adding: 'I'm pretty sure she's dead.'

His video shows rescue workers on the scene as they loaded the bride's mother on to a stretcher after performing CPR.

Whittier Mayor Joe Vinatieri told the LA Times on Sunday: 'The mother lost her life. A 4-year-old is injured. How do you explain it? You can’t.'

'The tragedy of the situation is on the hearts and minds of many people. We need to pray for the family because of the injuries and losing someone on a day that’s supposed to be a great celebration.' 

The tree fell around 4.30pm in Penn Park and rescue efforts continued throughout the evening. Rescuers used chainsaws to pull out people from under the branches.

It wasn't immediately clear what caused the tree to fall. Officials speculated that the California drought could have weakened the eucalyptus which is believed to be around 50 years old.

'We’ve seen this happen throughout Southern California with both the drought conditions— trees are stressed — and we did have a large amount of rain,' Deputy Chief John Tripp of the Los Angeles County Fire Department told the LA Times.

Officials didn't immediately say what had caused the tree to fall. They speculated that the eucalyptus (pictured) could have been weakened by the California drought

The same Instagram user posted this photo of rescuers working at the scene, with a woman sitting on the floor while officials cordoned off a part of the park

A woman shared these two photos on Instagram, saying she had seen the wedding party as well as a quinceañera party in the park. She offered condolences and support to the victims

One of the witnesses said the tree split in two before it collapsed and landed on the wedding guests.

The Los Angeles County fire department responded to the scene after receiving a report about the incident around 4.45pm.  

Some managed to get out from under the tree on their own, but six had to be freed by firefighters.  

Witnesses posted photos of the park before the tragedy on Instagram. One of them said a quinceañera party was also there that afternoon. 

All guests trapped under the tree were accounted for as of Saturday evening. 

Authorities didn't confirm whether heavy rains the previous evening had played a part in the tree's fall. 

They did say however that the eucalyptus could have been weakened by the California drought, ABC 7 reported.  

Guests were later taken to a senior center not far from the park and were offered help by mental health professionals.

 

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