Easter Sunday proved anything but peaceful for Charlotte Purcell and her family, as well as other residents of a Vancouver neighborhood.
Heavy rains, high winds, and black clouds swept through the area, culminating in a lightning strike that destroyed a redwood tree in Purcell’s yard and knocked out power throughout the neighborhood. The storm built up and approached quickly, with the lightning coming at about 5:00 pm.
The Purcells, instead of continuing their celebration, spent the rest of the day raking chunks of the redwood off their roof, while neighbors came to find out what had happened, and to see the damage. Debris from the tree was scattered for several blocks.
Gus Fickett, who lives two blocks away from Purcell, had his car dented by flying wood, while Purcell’s next-door neighbor, Anita Shepler, watched as sparks shot from her electrical outlets. There was one injury among the neighbors: Kristen Anderson’s husband went running through their house to look for her, and ran into her, breaking two of her toes.
The only other casualty was the tree itself, which Purcell said she was sad to see destroyed, referring to it as the “big beautiful tree”.
Purcell might consider working with a banner printing company to create a banner to put up in honor of her missing tree, while Print companies may be able to provide literature reminding locals of the risks of storms.Get a Free Quote for Print
