Police said the tree branch was 4 to 5 inches in diameter and fell about 25 to 30 feet. Ron Titchenell said he first heard the limb break, then watched as it plummeted toward his son. Like a lightning strike, it was almost as if the branch found Steven.
"Why Steven, you know?" he said.
Officers initially checked into the account to determine whether there was another explanation for the boy's injuries, said Sgt. John Gilmer, a county police spokesman.
"There were numerous officers on the scene conducting an investigation, and they found nothing to indicate it was anything other than accident," Gilmer said. "I don't think anyone would expect something like this to occur. It's just very unfortunate."
Paramedics first discussed taking the boy to Johns Hopkins Children's Center, then made arrangements for a Medevac helicopter, the parents said. Ultimately, they decided to take him to Baltimore Washington Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
Ken Brady, a critical care specialist at Johns Hopkins Children's Center, said death from such an injury is rare. He said younger patients are more likely to die from head trauma and a tree branch striking someone in the head could cause a number of injuries, from cracking the skull to causing the brain to swell or even asphyxiation from the blood that his parents saw in his throat.
"Certainly, though, it's an uncommon story," Brady said.
Jennifer Titchenell said she believes that emergency responders waffled and wasted precious seconds. But she also said they had determined he had stopped breathing even before he was whisked away from the property.
Paramedics were on the scene within two minutes of receiving the 911 call, according to Battalion Chief Matthew Tobia, a spokesman for the Anne Arundel County Fire Department. He confirmed that officials initially decided to transport Steven using a Medevac, but the situation quickly changed.
"In the 10-minute time period it took for a helicopter to arrive on location, the child's condition deteriorated, and as a result, a decision was made to take the child to the closest hospital in the hopes of stabilizing the child rather than risk a longer transport," Tobia said. "The Anne Arundel County Fire Department is mindful of the loss of this family, and our thoughts are with them in this most difficult time."
