NEW ORLEANS — The live oaks lining South Carrollton Avenue are a New Orleans staple, lopped with Spanish Moss, the trees are part of the city's history. Some are hundreds of years old.
And on Tuesday one of these historic giants, taking out power lines and landing on top of two cars.
Neighbor David Baldwin heard it happen.
"There was a loud boom and I looked out the window and saw the fallen tree, grabbed my dog and we ran out here and saw the car crushed and we were flabbergasted," Baldwin said. "If that car had been a few inches either way it would've killed the occupant."
The two fell on a car and truck, the truck belonged to a maintenance worker from Stuart Hall School for Boys, which is right by the downed tree.
But inside the black car was Wendy Joseph, New Orleans EMS transported her to a hospital. Her husband told Eyewitness News that she's shaken up but doing O.K.
Dr Tim Burns, interim headmaster at Stuart Hall School for Boys, said the tree forced them to end school early, saying, "We had to send all the boys home again because we have no power, so with no power we have no air conditioning."
Several residents in the South Carrollton/Uptown area told me that they've never seen a city employee or contractor inspecting these live oaks, those residents are calling on the city to step up and inspect these historic trees before someone is seriously injured
Baldwin said, "Many of the trees needs to be trimmed and maintained and checked for termites because some of these trees are large and they're leaning, all the heavy rains we have had and the age of the trees, it's a real danger."
In July, a live oak tree fell on a teen in Jackson Square, critically injuring him.
Neighbor Tom Weymann said, "After the little problem in the French Quarter, I think that will give us quite an impetus to check the trees."
He said six months ago a live oak fell just down the way from this one.
"This tree in particular right here that has fallen a month ago had a large limb fall," Baldwin said.
The city said they're reviewing the incident.