Woman lucky to be alive after 2 trees fall on her Oakland home

In East Oakland, trees came crashing down on a home, injuring a woman Tuesday afternoon. 

It happened on Lynde Street, the same block where a tree severely damaged an apartment building in January.

There are a lot of trees in the area and it rained for hours. 

Two large eucalyptus trees fell on a home with three people inside in East Oakland, injuring Yan Hui Zuo who was in her bedroom.

"The tree went straight like this," Zuo said a tree came crashing down from behind her around 4 o'clock in the afternoon while she was on her bed trying to take a nap. It landed on her desk.  

"I feel very afraid at the moment," Zuo said two of the six eucalyptus trees along a creek next to her home fell and severely damaged it. 
Worried the whole roof may collapse, she said she immediately looked for her dog Bebe and crawled out of her bedroom window in order to escape

"If they cut down the trees, this could have all be avoided," Zuo's cousin Brian Tuyen said, adding that this disaster was preventable.

He said the city of Oakland had asked his family for permission to cut down the trees two years ago and that the family consented.  

But the city never did the work. 

In January, a large tree fell on an apartment building across the street, severely damaging it.

"Our lives are in danger here.  We know there's an issue.  The city knows about it.  Let's get things done," said Tuyen.

Neighbor Jovern Johnson lived in a multi-unit building behind Zuo's home.  She packed a suitcase and evacuated.

"I'm shocked but I feel like the city knew that those trees need to come down," said Johnson."Be proactive, not reactive. Now, it's a reactive situation."

Shortly after the trees fell, everyone on this block lost power. 

A PG&E crew said they came to cut electricity to the damaged home, as a safety precaution. 

As for Zuo, she said she's grateful to have minor injuries: a  bruise to her head and scratches on her arm.

"Lucky. Very Lucky," Zuo said about being alive after what happened.

She and her family grabbed what they could from their home and packed their bags. 

They're now staying with relatives. 

They said they love living in this area and hope to rebuild.


Amber Lee is a reporter with KTVU. Email Amber at Amber.Lee@Fox.com or text/leave message at 510-599-3922. Follow her on Facebook @AmberKTVU,  Instagram @AmberKTVU  or Twitter @Amber KTVU