Storms send trees toppling over on to Amherst homes

by JOHN LASKO

News-Times reporter

As fast as the severe thunderstorms rolled in to the county Thursday night, so did the damage reports, and Amherst was no exception.

The thunderstorms which struck the area around 6 p.m. produced a mixed bag of precipitation, vivid lightning and strong gusty winds in access of 60 miles per hour, which caused a tree to crash in to a house at 648 Park Avenue which Eric Strock just purchased.

"I was expecting to see just some big limb sticking through the roof, however I wasn't expecting to see an actual tree crushing the entire front part of my house," he told the News-Times on Friday.

Strock, his two sons, and fiancee Michelle were in the process of moving from their home in Wellington to Amherst Friday when he got an unexpected call from a contractor who had just completed both an interior and exterior renovation on the house.

"He said 'hey, are you at the house?' and I said 'no' and he said 'you better get up here because there is a tree through the front of the house," he said.

Strock believes a strong gust of wind must have toppled the large tree on to the house since there was no evidence of a lightning strike.

Throughout the day, the sound of chain saws could be heard as Strock, along with neighbors and landscaping crews tried to clear and haul away as much as they could of the old tree. They also cleared any other miscellaneous debris from the house.

"We've met most of our neighbors through this and I would have rather met them a different way but it's all good and the house can always be repaired," he said.

Strock and his family moved to the house yesterday after it was deemed structurally sound. However the front of the house will have to be completely torn down and rebuilt.

"Another foot the other way and we would not be moving in to the house," he said.

His insurance adjuster had not been to the house yet in order to estimate any type of monetary damage.

Strock added his current house in Wellington did not suffer any structural damage or flooding due to Thursday evening's storms.

"It's funny because my friends were calling me and saying, 'is your house OK?' and I'm like which house and they said in Wellington. They were hearing on the news it was all flooded out here and I said we're find but our house in Amherst -- not so good," he said.

Strock said he bought the house in Amherst because it's a much faster commute to his office in Elyria and for Michelle as well who works downtown. Plus, they simply "fell in love with the house."

"The house can be rebuilt and I'm just thankful nobody was actually in the house at the time the tree fell and that nobody was injured," he said.

There were other scattered reports of damage around town including a tree which fell on a house on West Martin Street between North Main and Long streets.

There was also a tree which clipped a garage along Long Street. According to the fire department, there were no injuries reported in either incident.