Camper, 25, is crushed to death by tree that ‘catapulted out of ground’
A YOUNG surfer camping in a wood died after being crushed by a tree that fell on him.
Ryan O’Carroll, 25, was camping with his wife and a male friend while attending the Boardmasters Festival in Cornwall when the tree “catapulted out of the ground”.
He suffered serious head injuries and police confirmed he later died in hospital.
It is believed he had put up a tent and a hammock between two trees, using a ratchet strap to tighten everything when a tree came out of the ground in Saturday’s horror.
Ryan, from Southampton, is understood to have been part of a group that had travelled to the surfing championships at the festival in Newquay.
They were staying at Tehidy Country Park, near Camborne, when the tragedy happened.
Local Natalie Jupp said she was passing at about 1am with her teenage when she saw Ryan lying with the huge tree across his chest.
She is trained and CPR and they managed to lift the tree enough to treat him.
“Eventually we managed to get a heartbeat. He was alive, but only just,” she said.
“It was a freak accident. One of the trees had catapulted out of the ground.”
Police said death was not being treated as suspicious.
Ryan’s wife Stephanee posted a video on Facebook of the Freya Ridings song Lost Without You, adding: “This song explains how I feel. Lost. Scared. Confused. “I miss you baby so much.” In a further tribute on Instagram, she wrote: “I can’t believe you won’t be next to me anymore.
“The day I met you was the best day of my life. This whole thing has been surreal.”
Ryan founded a telecoms firm in 2013 with his childhood friend Nathan Hanslip.
The company, Yo Telecom, became an award-winning business with dozens of staff.