“The first thing I heard was the storm going through. Then all the sudden, I see the tree in the middle of the living room,” said Juan Avalos.
His small rental home on Dahlia Drive now has a four- to five-foot across the middle due to the fallen tree.
Avalos said he was taking a late afternoon nap in his bedroom, and that may have saved his life. The tree crashed through the kitchen and living room areas of the house.
“It was my lucky day because otherwise I would have probably been gone with the rest of the house,” Avalos said.
DeKalb County firefighters remained at the scene for several hours as utility crews tried to figure out how to untangle their lines and restore power to the small village.
The American Red Cross arrived to help Avalos. Also standing nearby was the homes owner, Nicola Ayoub, who said he never worried about the tree that fell and even had all of his trees checked out not too long ago to make sure they appeared healthy.
“I was just speechless. What can you think? The first thing I think of is that I hope everyone is living,” Ayoub said as he looked at the house.
He said he just finished having the inside of the house remodeled.
“Just about everything inside is in shambles,” said Avalos.
He carried a small suitcase crammed with a few clothes he was able to retrieve. He is staying with neighbors as he figures out where he will go.
