Panola County Sheriff Shane Phelps is recovering after a falling pine tree struck him on Wednesday evening while he was walking through a wooded area on family land to move a deer stand, he said in a statement.

Phelps said the tree, which had rotted, hit him in the head and knocked him unconscious. His wife and son drove him to Baptist Memorial Hospital–North Mississippi in Oxford, where CT scans showed fractures at T3 and T4 in his back. He is scheduled to meet with a neurosurgeon Friday morning to determine the best course of treatment.

“I want to thank you all for the overwhelming amount of phone calls, texts and prayers,” Phelps said. “This could have been a much worse situation, but I know God had His mighty hand of protection over me.”

Phelps added that he remains available for co

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