Falling tree hits windshield and impales mom driving daughter to get ice cream in VA

A Virginia driver en route to get ice cream with her daughter was seriously hurt when a tree fell across the car and a limb shot through the windshield into her abdomen.

It happened Saturday, Feb. 19, as she was driving near the Maryland state line in Loudoun County, Virginia, according to a news release from Carroll Manor Fire Co. officials. The area is northwest of Washington, D.C.

The driver was identified as 23-year-old Grace Costello, and she was traveling at about 1:40 p.m. with her 4-year-old daughter, Gia, station WLTX reported.

Rescuers from multiple departments responded to the crash and found “the driver was pinned in the vehicle with a branch impaled into them,” Carroll Manor Fire Co. officials said.

Photos show the car collided with a guard rail, ran off the road and was balanced atop a steep incline. It had to be stabilized as the driver was being removed. She was flown from the scene to a hospital, fire officials said.

Gia was in the back seat during the crash and was “unscathed,” WLTX reported.

The 5-inch branch “damaged various vital organs and major blood vessels,” resulting in three surgeries so far for Costello, according to a GoFundMe campaign set up for medical expenses.

Costello is a single mom who works in a pediatric dental office and “is the sole provider for Gia,” the campaign reports.

This story was originally published February 25, 2022 at 10:26 AM with the headline "Falling tree hits windshield and impales mom driving daughter to get ice cream in VA."