Frozen trees snap, crackle and pop across Central Texas, uproot family's front yard
Trees have fallen on homes, in the middle of roads and even on cars during this week's ice storm.
CENTRAL TEXAS (KXAN) — You've probably heard and seen a lot of trees snapping Wednesday from the weight of the ice.
Trees have fallen on homes, in the middle of roads and even on cars.
Larry Quick and his wife Lynn were left nearly speechless when a more than 100-year-old oak tree snapped and tumbled, yanking up their front yard as it went down.
"Just, oh my gosh, oh, my gosh," Lynn said.
It left behind a five-foot-deep hole, where it was once rooted.
"Our water pipe to the house ran right underneath the tree," Larry said. "And in the backyard, a tree fell on a powerline, so we have no electricity. So, we're living by the fireplace."
Matt Hudgins captured a video of his backyard tree falling on patio furniture.
"I thought I was pretty safe until this nice jagged piece here came down, you know, right by my face," Hudgins said.
It could take days for tree trimmers to get out to neighborhoods, managing hundreds of calls since Wednesday morning.
"One hundred-deep [on] phone calls this morning," Mike Ruiz with Wild Oak Tree Service said.
In some cases they might even have to wait for the ice to melt, Ruiz told Reporter Jala Washington. He said it depends on how big the tree and branches are.
"If [the tree branches are] going to dull, and in some cases, [it] may even break some of the chains," Ruiz said.
Ruiz said you shouldn't try to manage fallen trees yourself, because it could make things worse. He also said shaking ice off trees can sometimes make things worse, causing some branches to snap that otherwise would have been fine.
The Quicks are just thankful they are home and no one was harmed.
"It's sad, but it could have been a lot worse," Lynn said.