10-year-old girl killed, 2 hospitalized after tree falls on home in southwest Atlanta

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — A 10-year-old girl was killed and two of her family were sent to the hospital after a large tree fell on a home in the Mozley Park neighborhood overnight Saturday.

At around 3 a.m. on Saturday, Atlanta Fire Rescue Department crews responded to the 1400 block of Mims Street SW, where they found the tree had snapped in half and collapsed onto the house.

A’erica Dixon, a fourth-grade student at KIPP WAYS Academy, died from the impact.

Dixon’s mother and grandmother were rushed to Grady Memorial Hospital in ambulances. The two are expected to recover.

Atlanta Fire Rescue spokesman Anaré Holmes said his heart goes out to the family.

“This is a sad occasion. It’s a tragedy,” he said. “There’s no other way to say it.”

Dixon’s 14-year-old sister, Akiylah Dixon, described the terrifying moment to Atlanta News First.

“The house just started shaking. Everything just crashed, and I just see my mama running through the hallway to get to my grandma,” she said. “I broke down really bad, because that wasn’t just my little sister. That was my best friend.”

Firefighters, Atlanta police and the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office remained at the scene for several hours as public works crews tried to cut the tree apart.

The American Red Cross and other agencies have been called in to assist the family.

Gov. Brian Kemp acknowledged the tragedy on social media.

“This morning, we’re saddened by the tragic ing of this young girl as a result of last night’s storms,” he wrote on X. “We ask that all Georgians us in praying for her loved ones during this difficult time.”

Neighbors told Atlanta News First that the tree split the other way last August. When that happened, neighbors said it knocked down the power lines, crushed a car and landed in the yard across the street.

Neighbors said the tree was left hollow on the inside and the remaining majority of the tree hung over the house.

Days prior to the tragic event, the city marked the trees at the house next door as slated for removal.