BRUNSWICK, Ga. — A Brunswick couple’s car was destroyed after a tree they say they warned their landlord about fell on it last Saturday.
Geraldine McDermott and Henry Baker have lived in Shady Acres for a decade.
It’s a mobile home park in Brunswick owned by Parakeet Communities, and it has no shortage of trees.
The couple tells Action News Jax that some of those trees are rotting from the inside out, like the one that fell directly on their car and totaled it.
But the couple says they warned the landlord about this tree earlier this year.
“The tree was dead. We notified her of that six months ago,” McDermott said. “She said she’d get back with us in a week, and she never did.”
>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<
McDermott says even after the damage to the car, the landlord ignored her.
“She thought it was a little branch, and asked me if it was that necessary to come and look at,” McDermott said. “And I told her yes, it was the whole tree, and it totaled my boyfriend’s car.”
The couple says a tree inspector told them two other trees near the trailer they rent are also at risk of falling due to disease.
“I don’t want to sleep in the trailer now because I don’t know if that tree is going to fall and we’re going to not wake up the next day,” McDermott said.
[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]
According to Consumer Ed, Georgia fallen tree responsibility laws say if a landlord was aware a tree was dead or diseased, they’re likely liable for damages.
The couple says they’ve reached out to Parakeet Communities several times and haven’t gotten a response.
Action News Jax also reached out online and by phone, and we’re unable to get a hold of them.
The couple says they worry a tree could fall on a child.
“These trees are gonna kill us or kill a child,” McDermott said. “You can’t replace the child, but we can replace our car.”
Action News Jax went to the leasing office to speak with the landlord about the couple’s concerns. We were told that we were on private property and had to leave.
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
