Fallen tree removal and storm cleanup: what to do when a tree comes down

A big tree coming down is one of the most common results of a Cape Fear storm. The old live oaks, pines, and water oaks that make Wilmington beautiful are also heavy, and saturated soil plus high wind brings them down across roofs, fences, driveways, and power lines. After Hurricane Florence and Hurricane Dorian, fallen trees were everywhere across New Hanover and Brunswick counties.

If a tree just came down on your property, this guide will help you stay safe and make the right calls in the right order.

First, treat every fallen tree as a hazard

A tree on the ground looks harmless, but it rarely is. The trunk can be under enormous tension, the root ball can shift, and you cannot always see what the tree is resting on or tangled in.

Before you go near it, check for these dangers:

• Power lines under, over, or tangled in the tree, which make it a deadly hazard
• A trunk or limbs under spring tension that can snap or roll when cut
• An uplifted root ball that can drop back into the hole without warning
• Damage to the structure the tree is resting on, which may be unstable

If the tree is touching or near a power line, stay back and call your utility. Do not try to clear it, and do not let anyone walk under it. This is the situation where people get killed trying to be helpful. The same goes for a tree resting on a roof or a vehicle, because the weight is shifting and the structure underneath may be weaker than it looks.

Document the damage before anything moves

If the tree hit your home, fence, vehicle, or another structure, take photos before any cutting starts. Get wide shots that show the whole scene and close-ups of the specific damage. Note the date and what happened.

This is general guidance and not insurance advice, so check with your adjuster or your policy about what they want to see. But in our experience, clear before-cleanup photos are always worth the two minutes they take. If you hire a removal crew, keep their invoice too, since a written record of the work helps everyone stay on the same page.

Why fallen tree removal is not a DIY job

We get it. There is a chainsaw in the garage and a strong urge to start cutting. But storm-felled trees are a different animal than firewood. A trunk under tension can kick back violently, a limb can spring loose, and a partially supported tree can shift the moment you relieve pressure on it.

A professional crew handles this work with the right approach:

• We read the tension and load before we ever start cutting
• We work in the correct sequence so the tree comes apart safely
• We protect the structure underneath instead of dropping more weight on it
• We have the equipment to move heavy sections and the insurance to back the work

There is a difference between tree-on-structure removal and the cleanup that follows. Either way, once the tree is down and sectioned, you are left with a yard full of heavy debris, and that is exactly the kind of haul-off we handle every day.

After the tree is down: the cleanup

Once the tree is cut into manageable pieces, the property still has to be cleared. Branches, brush, splintered wood, and the mess from whatever the tree damaged all have to go somewhere.

We handle the full storm cleanup, including hauling away debris, clearing your driveway and walkways, and getting the property back to usable. We serve Wilmington, Leland, Hampstead, Burgaw, and the surrounding New Hanover and Brunswick county communities, and we know how local debris pickup and staging works.

Salty Fox Services is owner-operated by Robert Fox, a service-disabled veteran, and we are licensed and insured in North Carolina with a 5.0-star rating on Google. If a tree has come down on your property, do not risk it with a chainsaw and a prayer. Call us at 910-612-0397 and we will clear it safely and haul the debris away.