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1 dead after strong California winds topple tree

Police say the victims were possibly homeless and camping in a remote area of Pogonip Park in Santa Cruz when the tree fell Sunday morning.

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — Authorities say a woman has died and a man was injured by a tree that fell in high winds at a park in central California.

Police say the victims were possibly homeless and camping in a remote area of Pogonip Park in Santa Cruz when the tree fell Sunday morning.

Strong winds are driving Northern California fires and spurring power cutoffs, with nearly 200,000 people ordered to evacuate.

Sgt. Mark Eveleth said officers hiked off a main trail to reach the victims. The woman in her mid-50's was declared dead at the scene. The man sustained injuries to his hip and chest.

Eveleth said an ambulance drove the man to a trauma center because high winds kept a helicopter from airlifting him.

The Santa Cruz County coroner's office was trying to identify the woman.

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