Look Who it Was Random video

Falling Rain Leads To Falling Trees

471 views · Published 13 July 2012 · 2:13 · Indexed 12 November 2026

Channel: WTVC NewsChannel 9 · 2012 · News & Politics

Watch on YouTube

by Karen Zatkulak  The wet weather has hit after several weeks of dry weather, and it is affecting area trees.  Most of us have them in our yard, and quite a few people know of a nearby tree that has the potential to fall..   Public Works tell us they responded to quite a few fallen trees on Thursday.  We found them across roads and pulling down power lines.  We also found out they could fall even faster if the weather continues.As the much needed rain fell, and the creeks filled, the chainsaws fired up.  We found a crew chopping the massive trunks and branches that toppled as a result of the soggy weather on Old Dayton Pike.In St. Elmo, firefighters responded to a huge tree that fell from a front yard, bringing down power lines with it.  The roots were simply ripped out of the moist ground below.  Chattanooga Forester Gene Hyde tells us, "The tree roots become loose in the soil and then you add the weight of the water to the trees."Hyde explains that damp weather mixed with the recent drought, makes trees even more likely to fall.  "The drought has killed some of the smaller roots which have decayed some of the larger ones, and so larger trees don't have the stability they have in years past."But the good news, according to experts, is that it's exactly what we need.  Horticulturalist Tom Stebbins says, "When we started getting 103 degree heat for days and days it was very concerning to me too, because the trees were looking pale and droopy."Hyde tells us the rain can keep falling now, and as long as the wind doesn't blow, he hopes the trees will bounce back.  "I'm going to put an extra dollar in the collection plate this week at church, to say thank you.  I've been waiting for this for a long time."The official total of rain for the last three days is nearly three inches.

More from this channel