Massive eucalyptus tree crashes onto Castro Valley home
CASTRO VALLEY, Calif. - As the rains came pouring down on Monday morning, Deanna Abrew woke up to the sound of a 170-foot tall eucalyptus tree crashing onto her in-law unit in Castro Valley.
Her adult grandson, Chris Dykes, was asleep in bed, when he woke up to find sheet rock from the ceiling falling on his face.
Dykes was not hurt.
He thinks the chimney in the room may have broken the tree's fall, preventing it from crushing his bed as he slept.
He said when Alameda County firefighters arrived and saw the damage, they told him to go buy some lottery tickets.
Dykes seemed unfazed by the close call.
"I am feeling pretty good," he said with a smile. "Luck is on my side, I guess."
His grandmother had noticed the tree the day before, slanting precariously over her property.
"The tree was leaning this way," she said, tilting her hand to demonstrate. "It looked ike too much of the root area was exposed."
She was planning to call the county authorities in the morning to report it, when the tree fell overnight.
Security camera from her next-door neighbor's camera captured the roaring sound of the tree collapsing.
The neighbor said the ground shook and swayed and at first, she thought it was an earthquake.
This was not the only tree to fall in the Bay Area during the torrential rains.
A tall Monterey Pine fell on Highway 13 in Oakland Monday morning, and another tree fell onto a home – also in Castro Valley – on Sunday, injuring the homeowner who lives there.
A giant pine tree fell in Concord Community Park, landing just outside the swimming pool area.
With all the mess, tree trimmers are struggling to keep up with the fallen trees.
Workers from JMV Tree Service in Hayward were doing the work. They said they’ve been working 16-hour days every day for the past week and still can’t keep up with demand.
"Unfortunately, it’s been so busy for us, we are no longer taking any customers," Juan Valle with JMV Tree Services. "All we are doing is previous customers that are contacting us."
Chris Dykes was asleep in bed when he woke up to find sheet rock from the ceiling falling on his face. Jan. 9, 2023
In Castro Valley, as the rains came pouring down on Monday morning, Deanna Abrew woke up to the sound of a 170-foot tall eucalyptus tree crashing onto her in-law unit. Jan. 9, 2023