Bellevue family says tree ‘snapped like a twig’ as it crushed their cars

BELLEVUE, Wash. — Gusty winds swept through western Washington Thursday, bringing down trees and powerlines in several areas.

In Bellevue, one family is still picking up the pieces after a massive tree toppled onto their driveway.

The tree, which lies on city property, blocked the road.

“You can see clearly how it snapped like a twig and it was blocking all of the street and all on top of the house,” said Rafael Munoz.

Munoz and his wife, Margie Garcia came home to a fallen tree in their front yard. It took dozens of branches and powerlines down with it.

They say their daughter got home just five minutes before it crashed down, burying two of their cars underneath it.

“She heard a thud of the tree coming down and then the noise of all the powerlines and cable TV lines snapping out of place,” said Munoz.

They said power was out for the whole neighborhood because of it. The city cleared the parts of the tree on the road, but Munoz and Garcia were left with the mess in their yard.

It was a deja vu moment for the family. Just two years ago, parts of the same city tree, damaged their property two years ago. They believe it could have been prevented this time around.

“If it happened 2 years ago, think there was a risk already in its history right,” said Garcia.

“They didn’t do anything because they weren’t expecting to have the tree fall out and of course, you could see the results,” Munoz said.

Could regular maintenance of the tree have kept this from happening?

Certified arborist Charles Montgomery with Eastside Treeworks thinks so.

“This is what we would call a case of included bark with a lot of weight on this inclusion. So it’s a weak part of this structure of this tree so when the wind hit it, that’s when this failure happened,” he said.

Montgomery told us it’s good to keep an eye out for certain signs, before calling an arborist.

“If it’s windy and you’re concerned with your trees. It’s around the root plate, which is the area around the base of the tree,” he said. “If you see any lifting in that area or cracking in the soil.”

Even though the tree that came crashing down belongs to the city, it’s up to the resident or property owner to deal with the damage.

The City of Bellevue gave us this statement:

Trees on private property and in the right-of-way are the responsibility of the property owner or abutting property owner to maintain. Similar to other cities, Bellevue City Code (BCC 14.06.010) describes the responsibility of property owners to maintain trees in the abutting right-of-way.

If a tree falls in the right-of-way, the city will clear the parts of the tree in the street, as the city has responsibility to keep streets clear. City crews do not otherwise disturb or enter private property. Homeowners are responsible for cleaning any debris that is on their property.

For the safety of workers, Puget Sound Energy responds to downed trees that are involved with powerlines. Residents can report trees that are dangerously close to powerlines at https://www.pse.com/en/pages/tree-trimming. There is also an FAQ on that page about tree trimming and powerlines.

If Bellevue residents have immediate concerns about public safety related to a tree, they can call the city’s Operations and Maintenance 24-Hour Emergency Response line at 425-452-7840. If there is a downed tree in powerlines or completely blocking a street, please call 9-1-1.

If residents have concerns about the health and/or safety of a tree, we recommend they contact a certified arborist or certified forester. There are two websites that can help:

• The International Society of Arboriculture
• The Society of American Foresters

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