What began as a peaceful solo retreat into the mountains turned into a near-death experience for Alex Mohs-Messerli, who was injured when a tree snapped and fell on his head while filming a cinematic hammock scene.

Alex had set up his hammock between two trees, one of which was dead but appeared stable. As he sat down to relax and capture the moment, the tree gave way, crashing down and striking him directly. Dazed but conscious, Alex quickly packed up and drove down the mountain, where, by what he described as “God’s grace,” he encountered an EMT just ten minutes later.

The EMT assessed his injuries and told him he was lucky to be alive, needing only a few stitches. Alex later shared the story on Instagram, where the video gained over 11,000 views.

I decided to take a solo trip up the mountain to enjoy God’s creation and film a peaceful cinematic shot of myself relaxing in a hammock. I set it up between some trees, using one that was dead but looked stable. As soon as I sat down, the tree snapped and fell on my head, nearly killing me. I quickly packed up and drove down the mountain, and by God’s grace, I ran into an EMT just ten minutes later. They said I was lucky to be alive and only needed a couple of stitches. Truly, praise God for His protection.