Tree falls on Occidental condo, causing $100,000 in damage

A 100-foot-tall fir tree fell on the Harmony Village condominium building in Occidental Wednesday morning, causing $100,000 in damage to one unit.

No injuries were reported.

John Cerda, a firefighter-engineer with the Occidental Fire Department, said there was no indication of what caused the tree to fall on the former Harmony School building that has been converted to condos.

“Sometimes those fir trees just come down,” he said. “They’re not very stable trees.”

Firefighters responded at about 9 a.m., and found that the terracotta roof had been damaged and the waterline running to one unit had been broken and had flooded the floor inside the unit. Carpets and cabinets may have suffered water damage where they touched the ground, Cerda said.

The unit was unoccupied, and may be a second home, he said.

Firefighters left the trunk standing for building inspectors, but cleared the roof of the debris left by the fallen tree. The water on the floor was vacuumed up, Cerda said. He estimated the tree caused about $100,000 damage to the unit.

You can reach Staff Writer Kathleen Coates at 707-521-5209 or kathleen.coates@pressdemocrat.com.