MUIR WOODS NATIONAL MONUMENT PARK, Calif. (AP) — A huge redwood tree fell and killed a man visiting Muir Woods National Monument Park in California on Christmas Eve, authorities said Thursday.
Subhradeep Dutta, 28, of Edina, Minnesota, died while walking on a marked dirt trail with two other people in the park north of San Francisco famous for its towering trees, according to the Marin County coroner's office and a spokesman for the park.
Dutta was pinned by the trunk of the 200-foot (60.96-meters)-tall tree and was pronounced dead at the scene. The trunk measured more than 4 feet (1.22 meters) in diameter.
A woman injured by falling debris was taken to the hospital for treatment. A man hiking with the group escaped injury.
The tree fell following a series of winter storms over the past two weeks.
“This is a very rare, and isolated event that may have occurred due to wet ground from recent winter storms, around the roots of the tree,” park spokesman Charles Strickfaden said in an email.
“The National Park Service extends its thoughts and prayers to all those involved,” he wrote.
Almost a million visitors visit the park each year. It remained open Thursday and only the areas affected by debris from the fallen tree were closed to the public.
A recent survey by research firm Cohn & Wolfe found that 86 percent of Americans think companies should be socially and environmentally responsible. Burt's Bees is carbon-neutral certified and hasn't sent any waste to a landfill since 2010. Paula Alexander, Director of Sustainable Business at the company, tells Cheddar why it's important to work for a company that makes a difference.
Peter Loftus, Reporter at the Wall Street Journal, is skeptical of pharmaceutical companies touting lower drug prices. Merck may be cutting prices on medications, Loftus told Cheddar, but the ones affected represent a smaller percentage of the company's total sales.
These are the headlines you Need2Know
Kevin Sabet, who co-founded a nonprofit called Smart Approaches To Marijuana, compares the current state of the cannabis industry to the early days of the tobacco business. Back then, he points out, "we had a relatively new industry that had a product that [had] been around for a long time, but that they started marketing and developing into something addictive."
Cigna CEO David Cordani is co-author of "The Courage To Go Forward," a new book that explores the unique impact of micro communities. Cordani hopes Cigna's recent acquisition of Express Scripts will localize healthcare networks and expand his consumer base.
Regulators in Colorado have to keep up with and adapt to a fast-growing, ever-changing industry which consistently introduces new products into the market. "It is a challenge, but the engagement we have with stakeholders has been really valuable in helping us navigate those issues," says Dominique Mendiola, recently-appointed director of marijuana coordination in the state.
These are the headlines you Need2Know:
Trump Faces Bipartisan Backlash
Russian Woman Charged With Election Meddling
Hawaii's 'Lava Bomb' Injures Tourists
Deadly Fire Near Yosemite National Park Doubles
The subscription toy company creates boxes of creative DIY projects that are both educational and fun, says CEO Sandra Oh Lin. “We’re trying to instill that creative confidence as well as the tools.”
A massive heat wave has engulfed the east coast of the United States and has even made its way far to the west. Andrew Freedman, science editor at Axios, discusses why the weather system is so intense, and what has temperatures rising so much.
The e-commerce giant said on Thursday it plans to purchase Boston-based PillPack, which organizes, packages and delivers medications to consumers. Shares of traditional pharmacy companies like CVS and Walgreens plunged on the news.
