Winter winds: Uprooted tree crashes through roof of Frenchtown Township home
FRENCHTOWN TOWNSHIP – Last week’s winter storm with well-below-zero wind chills and 50-mph wind gusts uprooted an 80-foot tall pine tree onto the top of Dean and Nancy Babcock’s home on Vivian Road.
“I was sitting in the living room Thursday afternoon around 5 p.m. wrapping Christmas presents when it sounded like a bomb hit the house,” Nancy Babcock said. “I jumped when I heard the sudden crash. I knew the winds were bad but I didn’t know what had happened until I looked out the front window and all I could see was tree branches. It fell on top of the house and did some major structural damage.”
Nancy’s husband, Dean, was in the bedroom watching television when the tree fell.
“We’re just thankful the windows didn’t break and we still have heat and electricity so we can stay in our home,” she said. “You can see in one of the rooms upstairs where the tree has fallen through the roof. There’s damage in the attic and ceiling. With so many branches and limbs on the ground, we were afraid to try and move anything.”
A crew from DTE Energy was dispatched and repaired the fallen power lines but due to the holiday weekend, the Babcocks weren’t able to make contact with their insurance company, USAA Homeowners Insurance. USAA offers insurance products and services to current and former military members and their spouses. Dean Babcock, 75, is an Army veteran who served in Vietnam.
“My husband had tried to call the insurance company but they kept putting him on hold,” she said. “When he finally got through, he was told a claims adjuster is scheduled to come to the home this week to inspect the property damage. Right now, we’re concerned about getting the driveway clear in case there’s an emergency and we have to leave.”
Nancy and her husband have health issues. She has had open heart surgery, and Dean has sustained several falls recently and has limited mobility. He is also experiencing symptoms of dementia.
“We’ve had our neighbors check on us and, on Friday, one neighbor offered to start cutting down some of the branches to clear the drive but I told him, ‘We’re in a blizzard, and it’s too cold to be outside.’”
On Monday, an independent contractor stopped by the home and accessed the damages. The couple was given a verbal estimate of $3,200 to remove the tree and debris from the driveway and house.
“That’s not an option for us,” she said. “It’s an amount we can’t afford.”
The Babcocks are hopeful their home insurance will pay for the damage and tree removal but they are also reaching out to local agencies like the Monroe County Department of Veterans Affairs for possible assistance.
This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Uprooted tree crashes through roof of Frenchtown Township home
