A woman killed by a falling tree yesterday was a Filipino housekeeper who lived in Ladbroke Grove.

Reports have revealed Teresita Sison, 58, died when a tree which was being guarded by police in Kensington Road, Knightsbridge, fell over due to high winds from the tail-end of Hurricane Gonzalo and crushed her to death at about 11.40am yesterday (October 21).

Mrs Sison is understood to have lived in the UK for the past 20 years after immigrating from her native Philippines 'for a better life' with her husband, Roberto.

Police officers were diverting traffic from Kensington Road after the tree - which came from the privately owned square in Rutland Gate - initially cracked and left debris on the road at about 9.30am.

Witnesses have said police were not stopping pedestrians when the tree suddenly came down on Mrs Sison, who reportedly had no time to run away. It also smashed a wall.

Mr Biddu, 71, who lives in Rutland Gate, said: "I walked by at 9:30am to go to the post office and I heard a crack about 10 seconds after and I turned around and saw the main part of the tree had cracked and was leaning against the railing but the top part of the tree had branches on the road.

"It didn't look too bad but then I walked back and a police car was there then I heard a lady had been killed two hours later. I can't believe it. She walked out of her house this morning and you would never expect this to happen. I don't understand how she walked under because the police were here the whole time. I've never seen the trees trimmed here and nobody around the square has a key, we don't know who owns it."

Just 40 minutes later a tree fell and injured a Portugese builder named by colleagues as Carlos Silva, 30, as he stood at the junction of Eaton Square and Eccleston Street in Belgravia, near to where he was working in Eaton Place.

He was taken to St Mary’s Hospital with head, chest and leg injuries where he remains in a critical condition.

The Grosvenor Group, which owns Eaton Square on behalf of owner the Duke of Westminster, is investigating the tree fall while the Met and the Health and Safety Executive are investigating the death of Mrs Sison.