- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
Falling tree destroys Kelseyville woman's home; storm takes down other trees, power lines
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The storms that began Friday have brought with them much-needed rain and, in some cases, some peril for local residents due to falling trees, downed power lines and power outages.
The storm began early Friday, with several inches of rain falling across the county and into early Saturday, based on National Weather Service data.
Over the last several days reports have come in from around Lake County of trees cracking in half or pulling out of the ground due to the saturated earth, sometimes knocking down power lines and temporarily closing roadways, as was the case Friday evening in Lakeport and near Middletown, as Lake County News has reported.
There also were various reports of debris and rocks in the roadways on the first night of the storm, with county road crews working to get them cleaned up quickly.
However, perhaps the most harrowing story from the weekend storms so far is that of Kelseyville resident Ann Baker, whose home was crushed by a falling pine tree.
“I'm 74 years old and that's the worst thing I've been through in my whole life,” Baker told Lake County News in a Sunday afternoon interview.
For the last seven years Baker has lived in her small home – on Carrie Lane near Salmina Road – which is owned by her daughter.
On Friday at around 7:30 p.m. Baker was sitting in her recliner in her living room, watching television, with the wind outside “blowing like crazy.”
Then, “I just heard this crack noise,” she said.
Wondering what it was, Baker got up from her chair. Then, she said, she could hear the big pine tree outside her home falling, “so I ran to my kitchen,” thinking the tree wouldn't fall that way.
She ran to a corner, crouched down, and cried, “Help me, Jesus!”
Baker said the tree hit the chimney of her wood stove and then fell across her bedroom.
Had it been a few hours later, she would have been in bed. She thanked God that she wasn't, “Because I wouldn't be here today.”
She's now staying in a guest cottage at her daughter's home, noting that her former home was destroyed by the damage.
Baker said it would have been nicer had the tree just fallen across her yard, as that would have meant a supply of firewood.
“We can joke about it now because I’m alive to tell,” Baker said.
She chalked it up to being “just one of those freak accidents.”
Elsewhere on Friday, two power poles were sheared off along Pine Terrace Drive in the Riviera West in Kelseyville due to a fallen pine tree.
The rains also caused localized roadway flooding, including in one area along Scotts Valley Road.
Several power outages also have been reported during the storm. The latest was in the Cobb area on Sunday afternoon, where more than 1,300 customers found themselves without power shortly after 2 p.m. due to tree limbs impacting power equipment, according to Pacific Gas and Electric.
Other sorts of storm-related concerns also were being reported.
Northshore resident Dee Cuney reported on Lake County News' Facebook page on Saturday that she could see large logs floating offshore of Lucerne.
“Watching the Bass Boats go zooming across the lake with all the debris floating out there makes me cringe. Scary! Be Careful!” Cuney said.
Late Sunday night, the Lakeport Police Department reported that areas within the city were experiencing high winds.
In a 45-minute period police had been dispatched to three calls involving downed trees, some affecting power lines.
The calls involved a tree into a house on Manzanita Street, with no injuries and no reported utility issues.
There also was a large tree down across Smith Street, in front of the Lake County Probation Department, near Armstrong Street. Police said the tree compromised a high voltage power pole, which was leaning. Residents in the area were advised of the danger and told to stay clear of this area.
On Ninth and Brush Street, a large tree limb knocked the power line connection off a house, according to police.
Lakeport Police, Lakeport Public Works and PG&E responded to the calls. Community members were asked not to approach the areas until they were rendered safe.
There also were reports late Sunday nigh tof trees blocking Loch Lomond Road at Sycamore Road and Bottle Rock Road at Penson Court, with the traffic signals at Live Oak Drive at Highway 29 in Kelseyville not working shortly after midnight.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.