Pennsylvania Tree Trimmer Dies in ‘Freak Situation’ on Susquehanna River

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A Pennsylvania tree trimmer died in a “freak situation” while doing a job on an island in the middle of the Susquehanna River, his grieving wife said.

Shawnathan Winters, the 40-year-old founder of Magical Tree Service, was up for the challenge when he and his crew members got a call to cut down trees on Hill Island on December 13, PennLive reported.

“He was excited about that job,” his wife, Danielle Winters, told the publication. “And he was excited to take a boat to get there.”

“Unfortunately, I didn’t get to give him a kiss before he left that morning,” she told PennLive. “He yelled from the bottom of the stairs, ‘I gotta get going, I gotta catch the boat. I love you, goodbye.’”

Tragically, that was the last time Danielle saw her husband.

Later that morning, she received a shocking call from one of Shawnathan’s coworkers. 

“I thought he was telling me that Shawnathan got hurt,” Danielle recounted of the crew member’s call. “But he said ‘He fell, EMS just got here.’ He said, ‘I tried. I gave him CPR for 45 minutes.’ Then I just lost it after that. It’s kind of like a nightmare you can’t wake up from.”

Despite being experienced with heights after owning his tree removal company for six years and working on tall radio towers before that, Danielle said Shawnathan had a “freak situation” where his small saw that was connected to his side dangled down and severed the rope he was strapped in with, causing him to fall 50 to 60 feet to the ground. 

“There was nothing in particular about this tree that was dangerous,” she said. “He wasn’t scared of this tree. He had no worries.”

Shawnathan, who was born and raised in Georgia but had lived in Dover, Pennsylvania, for several years, was pronounced dead at the scene of blunt force trauma, Danielle added.

His untimely death was ruled an accident, PennLive reported.

The proud tree climber’s last Facebook post shows his excitement about getting to work on the river that day:

Outside of work, Shawnathan coached Dover Youth Basketball and was also “very involved” with Dover Youth Football, according to his obituary. 

He also was winning his battle against alcoholism, with his wife saying that he completed a rehabilitation program and had been sober for over five months when the accident occurred.

“Life was getting so much better for him,” Danielle said. “He was on track and excited to be sober. He was excited for life. He was everything that everybody could want or need in their life. And he was finally there.”

“He was proud of the fact that he had a hard life, beat this addiction, and turned his life around,” she added. “He was doing great, and he really was their backbone. Everybody looked up to him and his strength.”

Shawnathan leaves behind two children, including Shawnathan Winters, Jr., and three stepchildren, his obituary states.

“My three older children are hurting,” Danielle said. “They’re devastated to say the least.”

“He touched people’s lives so much. Once you knew Shawnathan, you loved Shawnathan. There’s something about this southern man and his accent and his passion for everybody and everything that made everyone love him.”

A GoFundMe set up to support the children, who range in age from five to 19, has garnered about $23,000.