Tree trimmer dies after being rescued from 50-foot palm tree in Phoenix

PHOENIX - A tree trimmer was rescued from a 50-foot palm tree after a tree skirt fell on him, leaving the man unresponsive on May 10.

The family of the man, Jaime Yipiz-Solis, says on GoFundMe that he died from his injuries that same day.

What they're saying:

It took fire crews about an hour to reach the landscaper, who became trapped between the tree trunk and hundreds of palm fronds. 

"They thought they had their safety precautions in place and then next thing you know, 911 was called and we went to work," said Phoenix Fire Captain Scott Douglas. "They can fall down, and they can trap the tree trimmer around his waist. They can trap their chest where they’re not able to get full respirations, and they can’t essentially breathe. I don’t know if that’s what happened here, but they did use chainsaws to be able to freeze some of that dead skirt that was up there some of the dead foliage and be able to put the ladder truck right at his location and secure him and pull him off the tree."

 

‘It was too late’

Jaime's family is, of course, devastated. He leaves behind a large family, including two teenage daughters.

His family says he was an expert when it came to trimming palm fronds and had been doing it for over a decade.

"It was too late. He was yelling ‘help me, help me’ in spanish," his family said. "I'm in so much pain, just like them. I am trying to be strong for them but I just cant."

His daughters, who remember their final moments with their dad, say they are holding onto any little thing to remember him, like the hat he was wearing when the accident happened.

"It broke my heart. I can’t imagine living without my dad, and now I am," said Aimee Yipiz, Jaime's daughter.

The 16-year-old remembers the last conversation with her dad.

"Bye Aim, I love you," she remembered.

The night before his death, she never thought it would be the last time she saw him.

"I just wish I would have stayed longer," she said.

What we know:

Rope systems and drone technology were used to help extricate the man off the tree in west Phoenix.

They also need chainsaws and a ladder truck to cut the palm fronds down and lower the man.

The incident happened around 9:30 a.m. near the intersection of 67th Avenue and Thomas Road.

Local perspective:

A neighbor said that it looked like the tree had never been trimmed before.

"He was working around and pulling the palm fronds out," said Richard Chard, who has lived there for more than 50 years. "I heard some yelling and then there was nothing after that.

Big picture view:

Experts say trimming these giant trees can take a toll on workers.

Jason Hawk, co-owner of Arbor Barbour Tree Co. said the fronds can quickly become heavy when layered on top of each other in a thick tree.

"You get all that weight crushing you, and it's just a lot," he said.

With over a decade under his belt, Jaime was experienced scaling and trimming palm trees almost daily, starting when the sun rose.

He had been working on the tree for over three hours on Saturday. The palm tree was untouched for nearly 50 years.

"Tree work. It's not for the faint of heart. I mean, it's nasty work," Scott Cebulski of Trees R Us & Arizona Trim a Tree said.

He knows just how easily these accidents can happen, saying the job is high risk but high reward, with your life on the line 30, 40 and 50 feet in the air.

"Palm trees are probably the most dangerous tree you can trim. 48 years of doing this, I've had 20 friends, 18 friends killed," Cebulski said.

What's next:

The hardest call the family had to make on Mother's Day was to Jaime's mother in Mexico, sharing the tragic news.

He will be taken back to Mexico and buried there to be reunited with his family.

Click here if you'd like to help the family through GoFundMe donations.

Map of where the incident happened:

PhoenixCrime and Public SafetyNews