Storm brings down trees across Roy, Clinton

ROY — A resident recounts the scary moments during a thunderstorm Tuesday afternoon when a tree crashed into his home as he and his wife were inside.

It was one of many trees to topple around Roy and Clinton in the wind.

Resident Tom Lewis said his wife tracked the weather forecast and saw the storm coming. He explained how she was worried about the wind gusts, and Lewis reassured her things would be okay.

“I’m always saying, you know, ‘It’s going to be fine.’ It’s always fine,” Lewis said. “But today, it wasn’t fine.”

As they sat in their bedroom in the back of the home, he said it felt like an earthquake hit.

“We heard the biggest crash we’ve ever heard. The whole house shakes, and we thought we were done for,” Lewis recounted.

When the shaking settled, he said he knew immediately that a dead tree on the property behind theirs had hit his home.

Looking at the damage outside, half of the tree split off. It took out a portion of the fence, tore a hole in the roof, and cracked the bathroom ceiling.

Lewis pointed to his bedroom window just a few feet from the downed tree, showing that it barely missed the couple’s room.

“It was just a real scary thing,” he expressed.

The storm took down many trees around Roy and Clinton, with residents posting photos from various neighborhoods showing trees and tree branches on homes, fences, yards, and across streets.

A massive tree tore up from the roots at a church across from North Park, and the Roy cemetery closed because of trees downed trees.

By Tuesday evening some of the tree debris was already cleaned up, but certain spots like Lewis’ home still had work to be done.

In his case, he said they’d “been fearing this for years.”

Lewis said he’s been concerned about the dead tree on the property next-door.

“And finally today, it happened, and we don’t know what to do,” he said.