Bruce Evenchik, a 78-year-old retired ophthalmologist who co-founded the Berkshire Eye Center, was killed Saturday, September 26, 2026, when a tree fell on him during the nor’easter while he was walking his dog on a trail near Kennedy Park in Lenox, according to Lenox police as reported by Boston 25 News. Hikers found him unresponsive, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Storm deaths on trails raise a question families sometimes ask later, and one that anyone who owns or manages land open to the public should understand: when a tree falls on someone using land for free recreation, can the owner be held responsible? In Massachusetts the answer is shaped by one statute, and it sets a very high bar.
The recreational use statute
G.L. c. 21, § 17C protects landowners who open their land to the public for free. Anyone “having an interest in land” who “lawfully permits the public to use such land for recreational, conservation, scientific, educational, environmental … purposes without imposing a charge or fee therefor … shall not be liable for personal injuries or property damage sustained by such members of the public … while on said land in the absence of wilful, wanton, or reckless conduct.”
Three points in that text do most of the work:
- It covers public owners. “Person” is defined to include “any governmental body, agency or instrumentality,” as well as nonprofits, trusts and businesses, and their employees and volunteers. A town or conservation trust that keeps a trail open is protected the same way a private landowner is.
- Ordinary negligence is not enough. On free recreational land, the owner is liable only for “wilful, wanton, or reckless conduct.” Failing to inspect or remove a tree that a careful owner might have caught is, at most, negligence.
- Charging a fee changes everything. Under subsection (b), the protection does not apply to anyone “who imposes a charge or fee for the use of his land” for those purposes.
The statute also says that permission to use the land does not make a visitor an “invitee or licensee to whom any duty would be owed,” which removes the ordinary duties a landowner owes to guests.
How it differs from a tree falling on your house
We explained last week that between neighbors, Massachusetts treats a healthy tree that falls in a storm as nobody’s fault, while a dead or decayed tree the owner should have dealt with can create liability. On free public recreational land, even that is not enough: the owner is protected unless the conduct was wilful, wanton or reckless, a standard well above ordinary negligence.
Nothing reported suggests anyone did anything wrong in the Lenox case, and the nor’easter brought down trees across the state. The point is simply that the law allocates this risk to the person using free public land, in exchange for landowners keeping it open.
Frequently asked questions
Who died when a tree fell in Lenox during the nor’easter?
Bruce Evenchik, 78, a retired ophthalmologist and co-founder of the Berkshire Eye Center in Pittsfield. Lenox police said hikers found him on a trail near Kennedy Park on September 26, 2026, while he was walking his dog.
Can you sue if a tree falls on you in a park in Massachusetts?
If the land is open to the public for free recreation, G.L. c. 21, section 17C protects the owner, including a town or state agency, unless the owner’s conduct was wilful, wanton or reckless. Ordinary negligence is not enough. The protection does not apply if a fee is charged.
Does the recreational use statute apply to towns?
Yes. The statute defines “person” to include any governmental body, agency or instrumentality, and nonprofits, trusts and businesses.
Sources: Boston 25 News, “Retired eye doctor struck and killed by tree during nor’easter,” reporting Lenox police statements and the Berkshire Eye Center’s statement. Statutory text of G.L. c. 21, section 17C read at malegislature.gov. General information about Massachusetts law, not legal advice. Our condolences to Dr. Evenchik’s family and colleagues.