THIS is the shocking moment a massive 180ft Christmas tree collapses during a storm – killing one and injuring two.
The bizarre floating structure, mounted on a lagoon near Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, came crashing down into the water yesterday afternoon.
Footage shows the tree propped up in the sea while the wind blows at deadly speed – visible by the palm tree dramatically swaying.
Suddenly the structure starts to slowly fall forward in front of the dark grey sky.
Other footage shows workers jumping into the water and trying to swim away from the deadly tree.
But its fall soon picks up speed, with the structure appearing to completely collapse before plummeting into the sea – causing a ginormous splash.
The Christmas tree accident resulted in the death of one person and injured two others.
The three casualties were workers who had been doing the tree ahead of its official Christmas opening.
They were tragically trying to reach safety after officials issued a bad weather alert when it collapsed.
The man who tragically died has been named locally as 21-year-old Vinicius dos Santos Abreu.
He was rushed to Conde Modesto Leal Hospital in Marica, a municipality in the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro, but was sadly pronounced dead on arrival.
The two men who were hurt were taken to another hospital where they are said to be “out of danger.”
A police investigation into the tragedy continued today.
The 360,000 lights on the Christmas tree were due to be switched on an official opening ceremony on Wednesday as one of Marica’s principal tourist attractions.
Town hall chiefs said in a statement overnight: “Marica Town Hall deeply regrets the tragedy that occurred yesterday afternoon at Araçatiba Lagoon, when one person died and two were injured after the structure of the Christmas tree that was being assembled collapsed.
“The Town Hall is providing full support to the victims and their families, as well as investigating the causes of the accident.
“As soon as Civil Defence issued a warning of heavy rain at 3.45pm yesterday, the company hired to assemble the tree began to remove workers from the area.”
The statement explained that in the moment, “they were surprised by a storm, with strong winds and heavy rain, which brought down the structure in a few seconds.”
It added: “The victims were immediately rescued by emergency responders who included firefighters and medical staff.
“One of the employees was taken to the Conde Modesto Leal Municipal Hospital, where he was unable to overcome his injuries and was pronounced dead.
“The other two people, who were treated at the Doctor Ernesto Che Guevara Municipal Hospital, are out of danger.”
