As of Friday morning, the Rodriguez family had raised more than $5,000 to help cover medical expenses sustained from the falling tree branch. Credit: Go Fund Me / The Rodriguez Family

The family of the girl critically injured this week when a tree branch fell at the San Antonio Zoo has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help with mounting medical bills.

The Rodriguez family was visiting the zoo Wednesday afternoon when the branch fell on them, according to the GoFundMe. While it’s unclear what injuries other members of the family sustained, daughter Jordyn is in the ICU and suffering from a brain bleed and multiple other injuries, the family said.

“We don’t know how long the family will be out of work and what medical treatment they will need,” the GoFundMe post reads. “We need to pray for Jordyn.”

It’s also unclear from the campaign whether the family is from San Antonio or elsewhere.

@umaru.nyaa I was standing RIGHR in front of the tree and then i heard a loud sound that sounded like fireworks and the tree just fell, my mom almost got hit by the tree and there was blood everywhere, luckily no one died but it was so scary #sanantonio #zoo #treefalling #fyp ♬ original sound – umaru

The incident made national headlines, and a TikTok video shot at the zoo that afternoon shows people scrambling to assist while screams for help come from under the fallen foliage.

The San Antonio Zoo hasn’t responded to questions from the Current about the branch collapse that injured seven people. However, in a press release, San Antonio Zoo CEO Tim Morrow said internal and external teams are working to determine the cause of the branch’s collapse.

“Our sincerest thoughts and prayers go out to those injured and their families, as well as though who witnessed the accident,” Morrow said.

As of Friday morning, the Rodriguez family’s online fundraiser had collected more than $5,000 — more than half of the campaign’s $10,000 goal.

Coming soon: SA Current Daily newsletter. We’ll send you a handful of interesting San Antonio stories every morning. Subscribe now to not miss a thing.

Follow us: Google News | NewsBreak | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter

Related Stories

This article appears in Mar 8-21, 2023.

Michael Karlis is a multimedia journalist at the San Antonio Current, whose coverage in print and on social media focuses on local and state politics. He is a graduate of American University in Washington,...