All those old evergreens are wrecking havoc, crashing and falling without warning. Another one bit the dust this Sunday on Pinehaven Road, and our eyewitness said it was near the “left hook” on the road. We also confirmed that tree detritus had been mostly cleared, by midday Monday.
Fortunately, no homes or people were damaged this time.
However the collateral damage was another power outage in the hills, with neighbors off-grid from around 8:00 am yesterday through 3:00 am this morning. We know it rattles everyone to lose their electrical juice, and it feels particularly awful during chillier winter days and nights.
In addition, one neighbor tipped us about some flooding nearby. We’re trying to understand what happened there, and whether any water-main damage is related to the downed tree. There’s zero confirmation yet.
Anyway, another day does mean another tree fall. That’s one of the risks of Montclair living, especially as trees planted 80-plus years ago reach their senior years.
Today in Montclair, 94611 
Things to watch for in trees that are close to your house:
1. Tilt?
2. Is there mounding on one side of the base, suggesting the root systems is making it way upward on that side as the tree is tilting toward the other side.
3. Is there rot detectable if you poke at the wood? Especially check the location where forked trees meet.
4. Call a pro for a check-up. I’ve had good luck with Brende & Lamb.
Some years ago someone was killed when a Monterey Pine feel through his roof while he slept. I think it was on Skyline. I’ve heard it said that these particular pines are accustomed to sandy soil and hence their roots do not easily penetrate the clay soils that we have in Montclair. I believe that one way to recognize the Monterey Pine is by the diagonal attachment of their cones.
As someone who lives on Valley View squarely between the downed tree and the water main, I can confirm that the water issue and tree issue were separate. When it rains it pours – fortunately it wasn’t actually raining!
By the way, it was only a portion of a tree, not even the whole thing which caused all the ruckus. Also, the tree was on no kind of a slope whatsoever. As far as I can tell it was some upper branches that decided to give way. I run past that spot almost every day and there was nothing about that tree that looked suspect.
PG&E and EBMUD were both on the case in pretty short order, even on a Sunday. It was kind of a wild day trying to navigate around all of the trucks to get in and out!
Today we saw Oakland Public Works at work. They were inspecting and clearing trees, on Valley View up to the four-way intersection. It actually makes me feel relief to see a little preventative work taking place.