Sunday’s rain storm brought reports of fallen trees and power outages throughout the city.  Locally, Buzz readers alerted us about a large cedar tree that had fallen across Second Street near Lorraine Avenue in Windsor Square.  We sent photos to Nikolas Mook, Mook Arbor Systems, who noticed the root system appeared to be small for a tree this size. The shallow root plate could have resulted from root trimming years ago, that may have caused a defect in the root system. Unfortunately, this is common in parkway trees. According to Mook, mature trees usually fall because of some defect in the roots and or the root collar. Decay of the roots, combined with very wet soil, caused by wind and rain can be a devastating combination for our stately street trees.
In addition to reports of traffic light outages, there were plenty of neighbors who lost power at their homes. As of this morning, the LADWP reported about 1,400 customers in the Larchmont area were still without power. There are 2,625 customers in Mid-Wilshire, 2,008 in Mid-City and 1,628 in Hollywood waiting for service to be restored. Approximately 23,000 customers are without power across the city. Hopefully today’s windy conditions won’t cause any more disruptions.
LADWP urges all customers to use caution around downed or dangling power wires or poles. Always assume a downed line is still energized. Never touch one. Report any downed power lines immediately by calling the LADWP at 1-800-DIAL-DWP. If you or someone else is in danger, call 911.