Apr 1, 2009 6:31 pm US/Eastern
Tree Falls On Home, Licensed Tree Cutters Alarmed
FOREST HILL, Md. (WJZ) ―
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A tree fell on a house in Forest Hill Tuesday morning.
CBS
Workers cutting down a 70-foot oak tree in Harford County misjudged the landing zone as it fell squarely on an occupied home.
Mike Schuh reports licensed tree cutters look at the accident with alarm.
A licensed tree cutter can tell what went wrong during the accident just by looking at the stump.
Fire officials say a contractor working on a home also decided to cut down a mature oak tree just 20 feet from the home.
The kitchen was hardest hit. Three of the four people inside were in the room.
"It went right down through that window opening, rested on the window ledge, collapsed the roof. But the bearing wall on the interior of the home held up the collapsed roof," said Dave Williams, Harford County Fire.
They were hospitalized with non-life threatening injuries.
Experts say before you talk price or anything else, you need to ask a question, the most important one. Can you show me your license?
"Who do you have for recommendations? Do you have a license? Do you have your card on you or can you display it?" said James Pickett, licensed tree cutter.
All licensed tree cutters have an up-to-date tree expert license issued by the state.
"My insurance company has to send proof of insurance to prove to them I'm insured. Then they'll issue to me my license each year," said Pickett.
That insurance covers the homeowner in case of an accident, big or small.
Several tree cutting services told
WJZ they pointed out this accident to their employees. They all say experience matters.
"Well someone who really knows what they're doing, I don't see something like that happening," said Pickett.
Maryland's Occupational Health and Safety Administration says they're not investigating the incident because no workers were hurt.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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