DETROIT — A Detroit woman spent Sunday morning trapped inside her home by the top half of a tree, which was broken off from the trunk that was rooted next door.
It happened near I-75 and Eight Mile Road around 6 a.m. and while wind likely played a role in snapping the tree, she and her neighbor believe the owner of the property next door may be more at fault for the damage than the weather.
"I was in bed, 6 o'clock in the morning (and) I heard a noise," Barbara Deretowski said. "I thought it was the garbage can and when I got up I thought I was gonna die."
She couldn’t even get to her front door to see what happened. The large tree from the yard next door had snapped and crashed through the ceiling and the door, shattering glass and ripping through the front porch.
"Yeah it did! Oh ... you should see the door," Deretowski said.
She was able to exit her home through the side door, but the large tree blocked the driveway, and since she isn't able to climb over, she was stuck.
The city of Detroit says the address of the lot where the tree came from is owned by the Detroit Land Bank Authority. The leaves are covered in black spots as is the trunk, which is full of holes and appears to be rotted.
"I was hoping they’d come today, cause it’s his fault," Deretowski said. "He didn’t tear that damn tree down."
The Detroit Land Bank Authority sent a crew to remove the tree Sunday afternoon.
Deretowski says they recently demolished the house next door and wants to know why they didn’t remove the troubled tree at the same time — before it caused damage to her home.
"Why couldn’t they take the tree?" she asked.
As for the damage done to the home, the Detroit Land Bank Authority tells WXYZ they will look into it tomorrow, and we will follow up.
This story was originally published by Jennifer Ann Wilson on WXYZ.
