Trabuco Canyon has seen over 5 inches of rain since the start of the storm Tuesday morning. Add wind gusts of up to 35 mph to the already saturated ground and you have the perfect environment to topple large oak and sycamore trees decades, if not centuries old. The root systems are just not deep enough to hold the rain soaked and newly top heavy tree. Often unnoticed tree rot and disease weakens the aged tree and the stress of the storm causes the trunk to snap, toppling the aged giant to the ground. Falling trees are a destructive force. Their trunks, often weighing hundreds of pounds, destroy houses, fences, and cars lying below.
Fallen trees also create road hazards when their fallen trunks block roads and driveways. Such is the case at Trabuco Elementary school where a large, long standing oak tree snapped in last nights wind, blocking the entrance to the school parking lot. Maintenance workers were able to clear the portion blocking the roadway with chainsaws before parents and staff began to arrive. This is the second tree reported to have fallen in the storm- the first of which being the sycamore tree in front of Alan Schumann's house on Trabuco Oaks Dr.
If you live in the Trabuco Canyon and notice a fallen tree in your neighborhood, you can report it by calling the OC Sheriff's department general information line at 949 770-6011. For trees that may be endangering power poles and electrical lines, you can call Southern California Edison at 1-800-611-1911
Anymore trees falling? ;)
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