Texas Father of Four Dies After Restaurant Ignored Warnings About Deadly Tree

Clear Facts

• Kirk Foyle, 64, a Texas father of four, was killed when a diseased pecan tree fell on him while eating at Green Mesquite BBQ in Austin on May 19
• The lawsuit alleges the tree, nicknamed “Widow Maker,” showed visible signs of disease and decay but was never properly inspected or maintained by property owners
• The Foyle family is seeking $1 million in damages, accusing defendants of gross negligence for failing to warn customers or remove the dangerous tree

A Texas family is demanding justice after their loved one was killed by what they say was a completely preventable tragedy at a popular Austin barbecue restaurant.

Kirk Foyle, 64, was enjoying a meal on the outdoor patio at Green Mesquite BBQ when a massive pecan tree crashed down on him during storms on May 19. The father of four died from blunt force trauma, and now his family is filing a wrongful death lawsuit against the restaurant and neighboring property owners.

According to the complaint, the tree—ominously referred to as a “Widow Maker”—was diseased, decayed, and structurally compromised long before it fell. The lawsuit alleges that both Green Mesquite BBQ and the adjacent business, Aspen Hatter, failed to inspect, maintain, or remove the dangerous tree despite it being located on or extending over property they controlled.

“Defendants knew, or in the exercise of reasonable care should have known, of the dangerous, diseased, decayed, and/or structurally compromised condition of this tree and failed to inspect, maintain, remove, and/or warn of its dangerous condition,” the complaint states.

The tree was located at 1410 Barton Springs Road, with branches extending over the restaurant’s outdoor seating area where Foyle was sitting. According to the lawsuit, the tree’s dangerous condition was visible and apparent, and had existed long enough that the property owners should have discovered it through reasonable inspection.

“Prior to May 19, 2026, the Widow Maker was in a dangerous, compromised, decayed, diseased, and/or structurally defective condition,” the filing reads. “Upon information and belief, the Widow Maker’s dangerous condition was visible, apparent, or discoverable upon reasonable inspection, and had existed for a sufficient period of time that defendants knew or, in the exercise of ordinary care, should have known of its condition.”

The family’s attorneys say Foyle was simply enjoying his meal when the tree “suddenly and violently broke at or near its base and fell” during passing storms. The Travis County Deputy Medical Examiner determined his cause of death was blunt trauma from being struck by the falling tree.

Green Mesquite has claimed the tree was struck by lightning the night of the incident, but Foyle’s family and their legal team strongly dispute this assertion. They maintain that years of neglect and failure to maintain the obviously diseased tree is what caused this father’s death.

Adding another troubling element to the case, the lawsuit notes that the property owners took out a $960,000 deed of trust to refinance the property just one week after Foyle’s death—a move the family finds suspicious given the timing.

The defendants face accusations of gross negligence. The Foyle family is seeking $1 million in damages to cover wrongful death, mental anguish, and legal costs associated with what they believe was an entirely preventable tragedy.

This case raises serious questions about property owner responsibilities and duty of care to customers. When businesses invite patrons onto their premises, they have a legal and moral obligation to ensure those spaces are safe—including addressing obvious hazards like diseased trees that could cause catastrophic harm.

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