This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Community Corner

Big Oak Falls on House

Storm Brings Power Outages, Fallen Trees And Limbs Throughout Town

The fury of Hurricane Irene brought little rain, but winds strong enough to shred leaves and twigs from the trees. By the time most Ledyard residents awoke on Sunday morning, the electricity was already gone and the storm was howling.

During the height of the hurricane, Mike Whitten of Long Pond Road heard a loud crash from outside. His first thought was that a large tree had come down nearby.

In fact, it had been a little closer to home. 

Find out what's happening in Ledyardwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Half of a massive oak tree next two Whitten's house had snapped off and fallen on his roof. Fortunately, it had not been a direct hit, but it still had been enough force to rip through the shingles.

From the street, the two-story house that he rents was barely visible amid the tangle of leaves and branches.

Find out what's happening in Ledyardwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

A few hours later, he was already out with his chainsaw, cutting up the tree. Taking advantage of the stalled wind, he climbed up on the roof to spread a tarp out over the damaged area as a guard against further rainfall.

Ironically, before the storm, he said, his girlfriend had warned him aout the dead tree across the street. That particular hazard was still standing.

Whitten, who seemed to be taking it all in stride, thought his neighbor had said it best: “It’s all fun and games until somebody gets a tree through their roof.”

Homestead Road

Meanwhile, on Homestead Road, the winds toppled another large tree atop the power lines, knocking the wires loose. As of noon Monday, the tree was still blocking the way, with more than half the residents cut off from Lantern Hill Road, and many going through Long Pond Road by way of a private connecting road.

Fallen tree limbs and downed power lines had blocked off Lantern Hill Road near 214.  In case it wasn’t clear already, the crime scene tape across the road made it clear that all vehicles should turn around.

A drive-through Sunday evening showed dangling wires on 214 east of Ledyard Center as well as White Pine, with tree limbs occasionally obstructing part of the route. Other roads were passable, but covered with a coating of twigs and leaves.

By later in the day Monday, the volume of vehicle traffic had crushed down the organic debris and the roads looked clearer.  

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?