Severe weather causes trees to fall on homes across East Tennessee

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - Severe weather late Sunday night into Monday morning caused two trees to fall on homes in Knox County.

David Lambert, who lives behind one of the damaged homes, said his wife heard a noise during the night but did not see anything when she looked outside. Lambert discovered the damage the following morning.

“When I got up and got ready to leave for work about 6:15 a.m., that’s when we came upon the tree blocking our driveway from getting out,” Lambert said.

Lambert said the home struck by the tree is unoccupied.

“That was our first thought was, thank God, nobody lived here right now,” Lambert said.

Lambert said he worries about the trees behind his own home, particularly during the spring.

Related Coverage: ‘Like an earthquake’ | Overnight storms bring massive limb down outside Blount County family home

Chad Benton, owner of East TN Tree Service, said spring is the prime time for trees to uproot. He said emergency tree removal situations carry serious risks.

“We’ve had trees that have fallen on houses and pinned people in their beds. We’ve had people get hurt from trees falling on them. I’ve cleaned up trees that fell on people,” Benton said. “I mean, just awful stuff since we’ve been in the business.”