Large Trees in Oakwood community cause distress and thousands of dollars of damage

Neighbors say they shouldn't have to be responsible for fallen trees that have been shown to damage homes and cars

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WTVQ) -The battle over tree-cutting in Lexington continues, but instead of neighbors fighting to keep their trees, they’re calling for them to be removed. The only problem is they say their pleas are falling on deaf ears.

Leo Wilson has lived in the Oakwood neighborhood for forty years. He says in the last twenty years he and his neighbors have been experiencing danger in their own backyard. In the community there are skyscraper trees that neighbors like Glendola Lewis say will sway in the wind. About ten years ago she reports that one even fell on her house.

“When they had that main freeze, a tree came down and tore a part of my roof tore a part of my den the whole backyard looked like a war zone,” says Lewis.

Lewis says she had to stay in a hotel for a week since it knocked out her electricity. Since then she says severe weather leaves her restless.

“I get tired of being scared every night when I lay down and go to sleep,” She says.

Lewis isn’t the only one, another neighbor Angela Taylor shared a video of a tree that caught fire and fell on *her* house.

Louis and her neighbors says they’ve attempted to get the city involved and while Kentucky Utilities has come out to help, they say their efforts have been fruitless.

“In a situation where KU comes out they only cut a few little limbs and they leave,” says Lewis.

Kentucky utilities in response gave ABC 36 this statement..
“We maintain vegetation under our distribution lines for the safety and reliability of the system. If there are trees or limbs that are knocked down during storms, for example, the responsibility belongs to the property (and tree) owner to have those removed,”

The neighbors argue that’s not always possible.

“The trees continue growing high and there’s been twice when I’ve had 6,000 cut down a 9,000 dollar cut down and after that…I’m on social security I’m on a fixed income and I can’t afford to do it anymore,” adds Lewis.

Those in the Oakwood community believe it also shouldn’t be up to them.

“Those trees are on a utility line. They’re not our trees we didn’t plant them,” says Lewis.