BONITA, Calif.—A tree trimmer was killed Feb. 13 when palm fronds collapsed onto him as he was working to remove them from the top of a tall tree in a neighborhood near Chula Vista Golf Course, authorities reported.

The fatal accident occurred shortly before 11:30 a.m. in the front yard of a home in the 3600 block of Bonita Verde Drive in Bonita, according to the Chula Vista Fire Department.

When emergency personnel arrived, the 39-year-old victim’s co-workers were trying to free him from the heavy foliage that had pinned him to the palm tree about 50 feet off the ground, fire department Capt. Josh Sanders said.

When firefighters got to the trapped man via a large ladder, they discovered that he had succumbed to his injuries, Sanders said. It took them about a half-hour to free his body from the fronds, the captain said.

The victim’s name was withheld pending family notification.