Still shaking, and grateful no one was hurt, Sue Errington opened her bedroom door Thursday to show CHEK News the damage from a tree crashing down onto her house.
The impact shooting debris and pieces of her home’s roof across her floor and bed.
“I’m just glad I wasn’t sleeping in bed,” said the Nanaimo resident.
“If you’re on the roof you can see down onto the floor, onto the bathroom. The house almost ripped in two,” said MJR Tree Service’s Kirkland Schurman.
“Whoa that was a big one, a big one,” said neighbour Jaime Silverio.
Fortunately the homeowner says her very ill husband was in another room at the time, and was unhurt.
“Unbelievably lucky. Just to hear that the elderly man was in there by himself and for that thing to come down. Whoa,” said Schurman.
“This is about 100 feet up and it fell. Oh my goodness,” said Silverio.
It happened at the height of Wednesday’s powerful storm that saw winds gusting to 90 Km per hour for hours and the jaw dropping scene was all caught on camera.
The video revealing how at 11:30 a.m., two towering fir trees that were on the shores of Cathers Lake started swaying, then in a hulking drop, came down.
Their joint rootsystem ripping from the ground as one tree’s massive weight collided with the couple’s home, and another wiped out Jaime Silverio’s fence and shed.
“The shed demolished, flattened,” said Silverio.
The tree just narrowly missed his home.
“I know, a few more inches, I’m very grateful,” said Silverio.
According to crews on scene Thursday, the tree hit with such force the house will likely have to be torn down.
“There’s definitely some force there, like that one log, that’s probably like 20,000 pounds on one side,” said MJR Tree Service’s Jake Murphy.
Fortunately both the damaged house and Silverio’s property are insured. As neighbours consider how much more could have been lost, to this very near tragedy.
Skye Ryan
