UPDATE | Friend remembers mother of four killed by fallen tree during storm
A woman's name has been released in a deadly severe weather-related accident.
Rachel Parsons died Wednesday afternoon when she was struck by a falling tree during a thunderstorm, the Roane County Sheriff's Department said. She was walking back to her home after checking her mailbox at the time.
It happened in the Craig Ridge area, about four miles west of Spencer. The incident was reported to 911 dispatchers just before 1:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Roberta Ash lives across the street from where this happened. She said she was friends with Parsons. "We were friends. We would meet at the mailboxes. If she came and it was raining, we would have coffee on the porch."
Ash was sitting on her porch Wednesday afternoon while Parsons was checking her mail, and she didn't realize it would be the last time she would see her.
Ash says heavy rain and strong winds picked up as Parsons walked back to her home. She says Parsons' son went to go look for her.
"He came walking down through the field there," said Ash. "He rounded the tree and then he screamed. He was jumping up and down, screaming for somebody to come help."
The power was out so Ash couldn't call 911, but she ran to a neighbor's home where she made the call. Unfortunately, it was too late.
Ash says she just hopes her friend didn't suffer, "That's what I am going to believe -- that she did not know what happened. I mean, the wind was so loud she may not have even heard the trees cracking."
She says she's going to focus on who her neighbor was, and not what happened to her. "She loved her kids. She would talk about them a lot."
Ash says Parsons was a mother of four who would do anything to care for her children.
A woman's name has been released in a deadly severe weather-related accident.
Rachel Parsons died Wednesday afternoon when she was struck by a falling tree during a thunderstorm, the Roane County Sheriff's Department said. She was walking back to her house after she checked her mailbox.
It happened in the Craig Ridge area, about 4 miles west of Spencer. The incident was reported to dispatchers just before 1:30 p.m.
Keep checking the WSAZ app for the latest information.
A woman died when a tree fell on her Wednesday in Roane County.
According to Roane County Sheriff Todd Cole, she was walking back home after checking her mailbox when the accident happened.
The victim was 55 years old. According to Cole, it happened in the Craig Ridge Area about 4 miles west of Spencer. He said it was along state Route 33 near Windyville Road.
The incident was reported to dispatchers just before 1:30 p.m.
Sheriff Cole said that the storm was brief, but the winds were strong. He said trees were down in the north end of the county.
No other information is available at this time.
Keep checking the WSAZ app for the latest information.
