Summer storms around Greers Ferry Lake arrive fast, and the tall pines and hardwoods that make the shoreline beautiful are the same ones that come down on roofs, fences and driveways when the wind picks up.
First: stay clear
A fallen or hung-up tree is under enormous tension. Limbs that look settled can shift without warning, and anything touching a power line is a job for the utility company — never touch it or pull on it.
Keep people and pets away, take photos for your insurance company if the tree hit a structure, and then call for removal.
What professional storm cleanup includes
A real storm crew works top-down and piece by piece — cutting the tree in sections, rigging anything over a structure, and grinding or hauling the stump if you want it gone. Every limb and log leaves with the crew; you're not left with a brush pile.
If a tree is leaning but hasn't fallen, don't wait for the next storm to decide. A hazard tree is almost always cheaper to take down on a calm day than off your roof on a windy one.
After the tree is gone
Once the danger is handled, it's worth walking the rest of the property. Storms usually find the weakest tree first — dead tops, leaning trunks and limbs over the roofline are the next ones to watch, and a trim now beats a removal later.