Towering Trees Met the Ground on March 13

On March 13, 2010, an alarming thud was heard by residents of Falmouth Street in Brooklyn. At six o'clock that evening a woman rushed to her unharmed automobile, the fallen tree trunk lay right beside the rear end of the car.

The owner of a red jeep, which recieved minor indentation, started to scream and repeat obscenities as he walked to his door.

The tree fell to the ground blocking the road from vehicles. However, the next day I realized that my block was not the only one effected. Just down the next street, a towering tree cut off a two-way street and crushed a white BMW.

The Northeast region experienced strong winds, at 60 miles an hour, and heavy rainfall, dropping an estimated 10 inches of rain, throughout that Saturday and damage was reflected in hundreds of uprooted trees.

Adrian Benepe, commissioner of the city parks department, reported that 1, 110 city lined trees fell or split in New York City alone.

According to ABC's Eyewitness News, an estimated 750 fell in Brooklyn, which contributed to the Parks Department receiving an all time high of 22-hundred calls.

For my fallen tree, rooted on private property, the clean-up process began two days after the fall. First, firemen came and chainsawed the branches to manageable pieces. The road was cleared, but the nearby sidewalk was stacked with branches.

However, that as far as city involvement goes. The rest of the process has to be settled between the owner of the property and private contractors.

Another tree on Falmouth St, that is the city's responsibility, was uprooted and obstructs the sidewalk, but it still remains that way 11 days later. This serves as a minuscule example of damages yet to be cared for. Joe Lazzar, who recently lost his bid for City Council, has called the city's clean-up effort "grossly inadequate."

Earlier this week a two day storm passed and people were warned to be careful, because the likelihood of trees falling was high. This "March madness" has not given the city a break, but it did break records.

The National Weather Service reported this March has been New York City's wettest with a total of 10.69 inches. The previous was set in 1983 with a reported 10.54 inches of rain.