A Mount Vernon tree trimmer is in critical condition after getting seriously injured on the job on Tuesday.

Mount Vernon officials say the next 48 hours are crucial in his recovery. They say he had to have surgery after he was hit by a piece of equipment and a tree branch.

City officials say the accident happened around 9:45 a.m., near the intersection of South Fifth Avenue and Fifth Street.

Mount Vernon resident Nadia Blake says she saw some of the scene.

"It was just a traumatic scene. So, I hope the best for him," Blake says. They took him out of the picker, he was unconscious at that moment."

Auto shop owner Kenny Raghubir says he has seen maintenance workers busy on the street recently.

"Yeah, they've been cutting the trees," Raghubir says.

Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard says the injured employee was taken to Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx for treatment.

People in the community, like Ramon Jimenez, are wishing him well.

"Accidents happen anywhere," Jimenez says. "If somebody [has] been hurt, what we could do is just pray for that person to survive."

City officials say an accident investigation is underway and issued a statement saying that "The city is fully cooperating with all relevant agencies to ensure a thorough and transparent review."