Landscaper in Princeton killed by falling tree

By Greg Forester, Staff Writer
   A landscaper doing work on the property of a Lawrence Road residence in Princeton Township was killed after being struck by a falling tree Monday, police said.
   Manuel Hernandez, 44, of Trenton, was cutting down a tree with a chainsaw around 3:40 p.m. when another tree, 15 feet away, suddenly uprooted and toppled over, pinning the Guatemala native to the ground.
   Coworkers eventually pulled Mr. Hernandez out from under the tree and called emergency services, who arrived on the scene to find the father of five in cardiac arrest.
   After performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation, Lawrence Township First Aid Squad personnel transported Mr. Hernandez to the trauma center at Capital Health System’s Fuld Campus in Trenton, where he was pronounced dead.
   Princeton Township police called the incident a freak accident, noting that neither Mr. Hernandez nor any of his coworkers were doing any work on the tree that fell on Mr. Hernandez.
   ”The tree uprooted for no apparent reason,” said Sgt. Ernie Silyagi.
   The tree was about 35 feet tall and 16 inches in diameter, according to police.
   Mr. Hernandez was working for Anthony’s Landscaping out of Ewing Township.
   In addition to Princeton Township police and the Lawrence Township First Aid Squad, police from Lawrence Township and the Princeton Township First Aid & Rescue Squad also responded to the original 911 call.