Red Oak Trauma: Crash!

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I had intended to spend Wednesday doing laundry and recuperating from another long day in several airports. Pope Francis' US visit seemed to provide just the right combination of hopeful challenge and encouragement, so I was happy to watch him on TV as he approached the beautiful Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, DC.

Suddenly we heard a huge crack, followed by a crash, and then the power went out. A large, heavy limb on our red oak -- estimated to be over a hundred years old well before the beginning of the new millennium -- had landed on the garage roof, taking out power for 70 Xcel Energy customers on our block.

Limb before removal

A neighbor across the alley called 911 and the St. Paul Fire Department soon isolated the area with caution tape. Xcel arrived in late afternoon, before the expiration of the three-hour service window and by early evening power was restored to all but our next-door neighbors to the west and ourselves.

An excellent work crew from Marshall Electric, recommended as 24X7 service techs by Xcel, arrived before sunset to beginning hooking us up. They worked by flashlight for a couple of hours until both families had power, and we didn't have to go to bed in the dark. The three men worked cheerfully in the rain and relieved a bit of the tension that had accumulated since the event in mid-afternoon -- consummate professionals with a sense of humor.

The next morning the arborist from Rainbow Tree Care arrived at 8:00 a.m., the first of four tree services contacted to actually make an appointment and keep it. He summoned a work crew and three guys (Levi, Chuck and Matt) began the huge job of cutting extraneous branches before taking down the limb itself. They worked all day in the rain to get the job done, using their equipment in the confined space of our yard, cleaning up as they went along and after the job was finished. We were impressed by their excellent work, attention to safety and courtesy to us and interested neighbors.

A big chunk of wood

On Friday, Xfinity hooked up our cable, phone and Internet and Bob cleaned the deck and washed his Corvette, mercifully undamaged in the garage. The garage roof will have to be replaced, we think, but that's only one item on the agenda for our meeting with State Farm Insurance on Monday.

The tree doesn't look too odd, but the canopy is certainly much higher and both the deck and yard have much more sun. Landscaping decisions can wait for another day. For now, we're relieved no one was in the garage or yard on Wednesday, and we feel like winners, not victims. We're sorry our great neighbors to the west also suffered damage and inconvenience, but happy the children weren't playing outside when the limb came down.