photo courtesy of a concerned neighbor
A reader sent us an email that I wanted to share, along with some information about what to do in the event you’re worried that the tree in your tree box may pose a danger to your property.
Last night, a huge section of the tree in front of my house, 209 8th Street SE, broke off and collapsed across 8th Street SE. It was likely weakened by the derecho and a bit of wind last night was the final straw.
If you recall, the Derecho knocked down a big tree on Friday night, crushing a Toyota Tundra, destroying the stairs and windows of two houses, and (incidentally) causing $2000 in damage to my car parked across from the Tundra.
The fallen tree and last nights trunk looked like they had old dried up root systems and blackened sickly portions. I would like to see the city examine all the big trees in Capitol Hill and replace the overgrown trees (many have massively overgrown their tree boxes over the past few decades of neglect) as soon as possible. I definitely want the tree in front of my house taken down before it falls on the house or kills someone.
That’s, unfortunately, a very common occurrence on the Hill and around the city after big storms. As beautiful as our large older trees are, they can cause some serious damage when big storm comes through. If you have concerns about the health and safety of a tree on your block, call 311 and report it to the Department of Public Works. Unfortunately, it can take several months for them to take action so take pictures and maintain records that you reported it to the city. Depending on your home owners and car insurance, this can help you get coverage in the event that your property is damaged from the tree.
If you have a tree on your own property that needs attention, Casey Trees offers some advice and even offers ways to apply for financial assistance to remove hazardous trees.
If you have experience with this, or other tips to share, please post them in the comments. I’m far from an insurance expert!
It seems like the city is already addressing the tree in question, about a week after it fell. They just put up emergency No Parking signs up on that portion of the block for “tree removal”. Everyone I’ve spoken to agrees that this tree need to go before it causes more damage or seriously hurts someone.
The city cannot easily keep track of every tree on the streets which is why you need to be proactive about calling them if you think the tree in front of your house poses a danger or needs attention.
The 311 website has a tree page. First the city comes out to check the tree, usually fairly quickly. They might determine 1/ nothing is called for, 2/ the tree requires trimming, or 3/ the tree requires removal. Trimming or removal takes time, up to nine months, unless it’s an emergency
Go here,
http://dc.gov/DC/DDOT/Services/Tree+Services/Request+a+Street+Tree+Service+or+Planting
Dan
And it’s gone! Very fast work by the city. Three cheers for 311!
As of Thursday afternoon, the tree is gone! Thumbs up for 311 online! Entire process from request to completion took 6 days (assuming they didn’t already plan to take it down).
Here’s a pic.