120-ft tree falls on 2 houses in Pleasantville

A widow who is a  pensioner has expressed disappointment that more than 12 hours after a 120-foot-tall laylay tree crashed onto the roof of her home, no one from the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Management (ODPM) had visited to offer any help with clearing or repairs.

Judy Garcia, 65, told Sunday Newsday that around 10 am on Friday, while sipping a cup of coffee at her Blitz Village Extension, Pleasantville home, she was startled by a weird sound.

“There was rain, like when you open a shower, and it just came down on the roof. Then there was a loud breeze, like a whirlwind, and I heard galvanise (sheeting on the roof) moving.”

She said she and her daughter-in-law, who lives with her family with Garcia, went outside to see what was happening.

“We did not see anything concerning the roof, so my daughter-in-law went back inside, but I went around to the back and saw the entire laylay tree had broken off, about four feet from its root, and came crashing down on my house.”

The huge tree, which Garcia estimated was between 20 ans 25 years old, also fell onto the home owned by her neighbour, Wayne Baptiste.

Garcia who has been living at that address for the past four decades, said the tree is on an abandoned plot of state land, since the last occupier died.

She said she had complained before to the San Fernando city corporation about the tree, which posed a danger to her home.

“I was told if I needed it to be cut, I had to stand the expense of doing this myself. I did not have the money to do that, so it was left there until this happened.”

She said the tree damaged a part of her roof and fencing to the back of her home, but after her encounter with the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Management (ODPM) she feels she may have to do her own repairs.

“I reported it to the ODPM. I think the number I got was for Port of Spain. I told the gentlemen who asked where I was calling from and he gave me a number for the city corporation in San Fernando.

“I called and called that number, finally someone answered, and that gentleman (at ODPM San Fernando) told me I needed to send pictures. He gave me a number to WhatsApp the photos, which I did, and he said he would send it to the relevant authorities.

“He further said everything happens in a timely manner. I asked him what timely manner we are talking about, because sometimes you get a good response from people who would listen to your plight, and then you get people who are like, 'Ok, that’s it,' and nobody comes to address it or help out the situation.

“I very well know the situation in this country and I have resigned myself to do it (repair and remove the tree) step by step as time goes by, because nobody is going to help me.”

A devout Catholic, Garcia lifted her arms in the air and praised God for life.

“I thank God for his blessings. I trust Him.”

Former Pleasantville councillor and candidate for the August 14 local elections Robert Parris told Sunday Newsday that part of the San Fernando East constituency fell under the Mon Repos/Navet district.

He also said, “As far as I know, that is not the manner in which the OPDM supposed to respond to a distress call and I would speak to the head of the ODPM about the response Mrs Garcia received.”

Parris also contacted her and said he would do all he can to ensure the tree is removed and she  and the Baptiste family get some form of help.