Residents pulled a family, including a 4-year-old boy, out of their SUV after it was crushed by a tree at an Allapattah neighborhood Thursday afternoon.
The tree fell at around 4:08 p.m. in the area of NW 31st Street and NW 21st Avenue. The driver of the white Nissan was at a stop sign and checking for traffic when the tree came crashing down.
"If they had taken off five seconds earlier, she probably wouldn't have gotten hit by the tree," a neighbor said.
Residents quickly jumped to action and pulled the driver, her husband and their grandson out of the vehicle. No one was hurt -- but the SUV was totaled. Most of the tree caved into the roof and tore through the windshield.
City crews had to use a chainsaw to cut down the tree branch-by-branch before removing the SUV.
City officials have not confirmed how the tree, at least 30 to 40 years old, fell. Weather may have been a factor, since it was rainy and windy when the tree fell. Strong winds were forecast in the area for Thursday.
Check the full First Alert Forecast on nbc6.com/weather.
