Lingering Effects Of Storm Could Take Weeks To Clean-up

CHARLOTTE, N.C.,None — Charlotte tree removal companies said it will take weeks to clean up all the downed trees and limbs from Tuesday's storms.

Arborists estimated there are hundreds of trees still on roofs, front yards and garages in the Charlotte area.

Eyewitness News went to Myers Park and caught up with Heartwood Tree Service workers as they started removing a large tree from a roof Thursday afternoon.

Most of the limbs were removed after several hours, but crews said they'd have to return the Friday to finish the job.

"This storm is about as bad as I've seen for trees on houses," said arborist Patrick George. "This is a once in a decade occurrence, hopefully."

George said his crews are working 12 hour days on storm clean-up alone, and that pace won't stop for the next several days.

Heartwood Tree Service has fielded about 220 calls from customers wanting trees removed from houses, garages and vehicles, and workers said that volume can be bad for their reputation.

"We're a service business, and we like providing good, competent, on-time service. And when you have this much demand in this short a period of time, you can't please everyone," George said.

Joe Cadieu's Tree Service removed a massive tree from Sean Smith's roof in Dilworth on Wednesday. Crews hoped to return Thursday but cautioned the family that the backlog was overwhelming.

"I'm ready for it to be gone. Hopefully today or tomorrow it'll all be out of here already," said Sean Smith.

Eyewitness News waited with Sean for several hours. When nobody showed up, our crew called Joe Cadieu.

"I was hoping to get out there, and as soon as I got finished with my last one, two more came in. So I couldn't get there, but tell Sean, I'll be first thing [Friday] morning around 7 o'clock," he said.

Cadieu said he's already removed more than two dozen trees from roofs, with more appointments set up through the weekend. He said it can take several visits to fully remove a downed tree off of a home.

Several tree service companies told Eyewitness News, home insurance policies typically cover only the cost of removing the tree from the roof. Labor and additional removal is paid out of pocket. Managers said that usually costs between $1,000 and $4,000.

WSOC