Local

Orange Park woman 'about fainted' after oak tree falls in storm

ORANGE PARK, Fla. — Heritage Hills homeowners are breathing a sigh of relief after storms blew over two massive oak trees in their streets.

No one was injured as a result of the falling trees, but homeowners were faced with the tall task of cleaning up.

One of the trees was in Rick Barrientos' front yard. He heard what happened while he was at work four miles away.

"I didn’t believe it until I seen it," said Barrientos. "I had the same reaction as everybody else. Wow!"

Afternoon storms blew over an approximately 45-foot oak in front of his home. The exposed roots reached into the sky as the tree’s trunk and branches sprawled into the driveway. The root system appeared to be at least twice as tall as Barrientos.

"I’m just glad my daughter was't here. She was here earlier with her baby parked right there in the driveway," said Barrientos.

The tree in Cloice Joiner’s yard came down too. She was watching television at the time and didn't realize what was going on outdoors.

"I came out and opened the door to look and there was a tree turned over and I about fainted," said Joiner.

The tree in her yard fell within feet of the home next door. It was adorned with a thermometer that managed to stay attached in spite of the fall. The winds that brought down the trees also brought on a range of emotions for Joiner.

"It’s scary, it’s scary," she said. "And what I really feel is not suitable for publications."

The house next door is practically invisible at points. Joiner says it’s getting cleaned up, and she’s keeping the neighbors in the loop.

"They’re cool with it, they’ll be down in a couple weeks," said Joiner.

Joiner tells Action News Jax the tree did not damage her next-door neighbor's home.