Horror as tech boss is crushed to death by a tree
A YOUNG businessman was crushed to death by a falling tree on a family camping trip.
Ryan O’Carroll was in a hammock style - tent suspended between two o trunks when one of them toppled on n him in the night.
The 25-year-old was left with serious s head injuries while wife Stephanee was s trapped in the tent.
l,He later died in hospital. Mr O’Carroll, who set up a successful telecom business, was staying with his wife and d younger brother at Tehidy Country y Park in Cornwall when the accident t happened.
The huge tree was said to have ‘catapulted aer out of the ground’ shortly after midnight on Saturday.
Campers helped Mrs O’Carroll to escape from the tent and lifted the trunk from her husband’s chest but he was pronounced dead at Derriford Hospital in Plymouth.
In an emotional tribute, she said: ‘I’ve tried to write this down many times and every time it doesn’t seem to say enough.
‘The day I met you was the best day of my life. This whole thing has been surreal.
‘I can’t believe you won’t be next to me any more, we were inseparable.’
She added: ‘You changed my life, I became a better person because of you, you loved me unconditionally and you inspired me every day. Ryan, your time with us was incredible. You’ve left your mark baby, you should be proud as we are of you. I’ll miss you o loads. loads I lo love e you o sneaky.’ The s eak ’The couple co ple are a e believed to have travelled from Southampton to attend a surfing competition in Newquay. Witnesses said the family had put up a hammock-like tent suspended 9ft in the air between the trees. Natalie Jupp, 36, was passing the woodland campsite at around 1am and rushed to the scene.
She said: ‘One of the trees had catapulted out of the ground. We were driving past the scene when we were flagged down by a young boy, around ten years old, with no shoes on.
‘My 19-year-old son darted out and found a huge tree had crushed a man. He looked dead.’ Mrs Jupp helped free Mrs O’Carroll from the tent and performed first aid on her h husband sba d after afte th three ee p people managed to move the tree off his chest. She added: ‘It looked a bit rotten but you wouldn’t have known before it fell. Some of those trees have been there over 100 years.’
Mr O’Carroll’s family released a statement through his firm, Yo Telecom, which employs around 60 staff. It described him as ‘determined, headstrong and passionate about life’. His parents, Giselle and Jeff O’Carroll, said: ‘We are very proud that he was our son and of what he achieved.’
His business partner Nathan Hanslip said: ‘Ryan gave nothing less than 110 per cent in any area of life.’
Devon and Cornwall Police said the death was not being treated as suspicious.