Large tree falls in Oakland hills, taking down multiple power lines

OAKLAND, Calif. (KTVU) - Repairs were underway early Tuesday morning after a tree fell in an Oakland hills neighborhood and caused a power outage.

Oakland firefighters said a large tree fell at 1480 Fernwood Dr. on Monday at 11:50 p.m. Neighbors said the tree took down power, cable and phone lines and started a small fire.

PG&E crews were out overnight and into Tuesday morning trying to restore power to the multiple lines that went down. They were trying to ground the power lines that will de-energize them and make sure they're not a threat to anyone in the area.

This isn't the first time people who live in the area have dealt with a fallen tree. Another tree fell in the same area just a few months ago, according to resident Peter Lester. Lester said he called Caltrans about the tree that fell on Monday, but no one did anything about it. He called their lack of action "negligent," especially in light of the state's wildfire history.

Caltrans spokesman Bart Ney said the agency gets about 2,000 such requests each month and a supervisor will now be looking into what happened with Lester's complaint.