Groveland firefighters escorted a woman from her Salem Street home after a falling tree broke through the roof Thursday, causing “major” structural damage.
The extensive damage at the house at 796 Salem St. was among the worst of the early spring nor’easter that also brought other fallen trees, power outages and flooded and blocked streets Thursday and Friday. Groveland Fire Chief Robert Valentine detailed the scene for WHAV.
“She was sitting in her living room. A large pine tree came down and went through her kitchen and a little dining area. She was scared, but she wasn’t injured. But, we did have to go in and get her and guide her out because to get out, she had to go past the tree, and that was something she didn’t want to do on her own,” he said.
Valentine said the woman is staying with her daughter, calling repairs to the house “extremely difficult” due to the damage. Trees fell on two other homes in Groveland, damaging their electrical systems. Valentine said one owner, a builder, plans to repair his own house, which is located on King Street. The building sustained damage to its front entrance.
The other house, on Abbot Circle, needs minor repairs to some siding and its roof. Valentine said the Groveland Municipal Light Department, arriving on the scene quickly, disconnected both houses from the grid.
“I’d like to commend police, fire and the Groveland Light Department for working together all day,” he said. “We had several incidents with trees down on wires, the three houses, and they all worked well together and had most of it mitigated by three o’clock, four o’clock yesterday afternoon.”
He added he thought the town was completely back online as of an interview with WHAV Friday morning.