A 70-foot tree fell on a group of students in Pasadena, California, Tuesday afternoon, critically injuring two of them, officials said.
The children were gathered at Brookside Park when the tree came crashing down about 4:45 p.m. just outside the Kidspace Children's Museum, according to a recorded statement.
Some of the kids had been at museum camp and were waiting for their parents, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Two of the injured children remained in critical condition Tuesday night.
Six other kids suffered minor injuries, the Pasadena Fire Department stated. All of the injured children were between 6 and 8 years old.
Hanna Lim's daughters were among the children who were in the park when the tree fell. She told BuzzFeed News that as she arrived she saw crews sawing at the fallen tree before pulling out a small boy.
"The more harrowing part was that it was such a small body on that stretcher," Lim said.
Her two daughters, ages 6 and 7, were not among those injured children, she added. Still, it was a frightening experience, Lim said.
"The staff alerted us that the children were all in that area and that tree literally fell on or near them," she said.
All patients were 6-8 yrs old. Fallen tree was 75-yr-old, 70-ft-tall pine. Indpt. arborist will determine cause (2/2)
It wasn't immediately clear what caused the tree to fall over.
Though officials involved in the investigation could not be reached Tuesday evening, the Los Angeles area generally has been losing trees to a severe drought that is now in its fourth year.
Arborists were investigating the Pasadena incident Tuesday.