Montgomery County boy killed after tree limb falls on him

Sept. 12, 2008

A 10-year-old boy in southwest Montgomery County died this morning after a tree limb fell on him, authorities said.

The boy's parents were cutting down a tree at their home in the 1800 block of Coe Road, west of Texas 249, when the accident happened shortly before 9 a.m., Montgomery County officials said.

The boy, Joel Smith, was a fifth-grader, said Richard Jennings, pastor of River of Praise, a nondenominational church in Tomball.

Authorities believe the parents were possibly removing the tree in preparation for Hurricane Ike.

An ambulance took the boy to Tomball Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead shortly after arrival, officials said.