A holidaymaker from Hull has had a narrow escape after a tree alongside the Kennet & Avon canal fell onto him as he was opening a loch gate.
A Great Western Ambulance Service spokesman said the holidaymaker had been “extremely lucky”.
“The tree had come down and landed parallel to the lock gate the man was operating near Widcombe Hill.
“It was a substantial tree… landing a few extra inches would have been fatal,” he said.
“Paramedics were called to reports of a man trapped under a tree… however it turned out he was under some of the outer branches and had narrowly missed being crushed.
“He was extremely lucky,” the service spokesman then added.
The man was taken to the RUH for treatment for back and chest injuries sustained during the accident.
He is not believed to have been seriously injured.