Roslindale Man Paralyzed After Tree Falls On Him During Nor'Easter

ROSLINDALE (CBS) -- The family of a Roslindale man says he may never walk again after being struck by a massive tree limb during last Thursday's second nor'easter.

Kristen Berry recalls the moment she was sitting in the kitchen of their home and heard the sound from her husband Scott. "It was a huge crack and then him yelling, that's all I remember," she tells WBZ-TV. "He immediately said I can't feel my legs."

Scott Berry, 49, was snow blowing on the sidewalk during the storm that dumped heavy, wet snow. The sound of the machine was loud enough that he didn't hear the crack of the weakened tree branch.

The limb severed his spinal cord leaving his lower body paralyzed.

"Doctors say he will not have any sensation or movement because it's completely transected. So he won't walk again," said Kristen.

His daughter Caitlyn says they grabbed blankets to keep him warm while waiting for the ambulance.

The weight of the limb was so great that even with the help of neighbors they couldn't move it themselves. "We were trying to talk him through it saying 'it's okay, it's okay, the ambulance will be here soon,'" said Caitlyn Berry.

Now the family is focused on the future including the physical changes they'll need to make to accommodate Scott at home. "I know that he's strong, I know that he'll work hard, as hard as he can to get to whatever he can get to," said Kristen Berry.

A GoFundMe page has already raised more than $65,000 in four days, and they're grateful for the emotional support as well. "Prayers and everything that's been offered it's really just incredible." Funds are also being raised by the Greg Hill Foundation.

Kristen Berry says her husband, who has been in intensive care at Brigham and Women's Hospital, will be moved to Spaulding Rehabilitation for the next several weeks before he can return home.