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Assistant Fire Chief Frank Chaffee estimates the tree in his front yard toppled over sometime after 11 p.m. last night, a casualty of the high winds that struck the island. - Richard Walker
Assistant Fire Chief Frank Chaffee estimates the tree in his front yard toppled over sometime after 11 p.m. last night, a casualty of the high winds that struck the island.
Richard Walker
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Journal of the San Juans
San Juan Islands

Downed tree in Friday Harbor, but no power outages on the island


Nov 17 2009

Assistant Fire Chief Frank Chaffee estimates the tree in his front yard toppled over sometime after 11 p.m. last night, a casualty of the high winds that struck the island.

"I saw it dance around in the wind last night," Chaffee said of the tree. "When I opened the front door this morning, all I saw was green."

The mature tree, which was replanted after toppling in a storm three years ago, blocked the front porch of Chaffee's home at Spruce Street and Rose Lane. The tree's upper branches covered, but did no damaged to, his fire response car. "It was pretty well covered" by the tree, he said.

Chaffee said the department had no other calls of downed trees in town, and no reports of injuries. OPALCO reported receiving no reports of power outages on the islands.

Chaffee said his tree will have to come out. "The soil is pretty thin. It's time."

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