SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — San Diego County has seen fallen trees across multiple areas during this week's triple storm event. The third and final storm of the week is expected on Thursday.
While the damage from early Wednesday morning wasn't as severe as the Monday storm, a certified arborist said it's still a good time to check on a tree's health and take preventive action before the next storm.
Ted Safford, a certified arborist with more than 50 years of experience in San Diego, shared essential tips to help homeowners protect their property before the next storm.
"Get your trees pruned professionally, thinned out to reduce the wind resistance," Safford said as his first recommendation for storm preparation.
For his second recommendation, Safford said placing a tarp around the tree's base could help.
"Saturated ground is probably the biggest contributor to whole tree failures. So when we get a lot of rain, putting plastic down around your root zones can help," Safford said.
Safford added that the trees that tend to fail during storms are Eucalyptus trees, Coral trees, Aleppo pine trees, and Ficus trees.
The recent storms have kept city crews busy across San Diego County.
According to the city's Get It Done website on Wednesday, nearly 30 new tree issues were reported under tree maintenance.
However, the City of San Diego reported higher numbers.
Since Monday's storm, the City has received 120 tree-related calls. As of Wednesday morning, there were 39 new calls, including 11 fallen trees, three fallen limbs, and four trees that fell on vehicles.
In the South Bay, Chula Vista's Public Works Department said they had no major cleanup events on Wednesday.
However, the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System reported delays on the Blue Line trolley starting around 6 a.m. Wednesday due to a downed tree near the E Street Station in Chula Vista. Strong wind gusts were assumed to be the cause. No one was injured.
