Slidell home suffers three harsh blows

By Erik Sanzenbach
St. Tammany News
Published on Friday, May 16, 2008 9:40 AM CDT



It’s bad enough when the wind blows one tree on your house, but it’s a real disaster when three trees fall on your property.

That’s what happened Thursday morning to Harold Cossich when a severe thunderstorm with high winds came crashing through Slidell.

“It’s all gone,” Cossich said sadly as he looked at the dented remains of his tool shed with huge pine tree branches on the roof and poking through the shed’s windows.

Cossich, who lives at 661 Corollo Road, just off Pontchartrain Boulevard, said he was standing in his dining room looking out on his back yard during a lull in the storm when the trees came tumbling down.

“The rain had stopped, and there was no wind,” Cossich remembered. “Then the rain just started pouring down, the wind came up, and I heard a loud pop, and one tree came down on the roof right over my head.”

Two more pops followed, and Cossich watched as one tree demolished his tool shed and another pine fell on his pickup truck, breaking the windshield.

The tree that fell on the house went through the roof and busted several support beams in the attic, Cossich said.

Branches from the tree broke several windows in Cossich’s den, scattering glass all over the floor.

The inside of the tool shed looked like it had been through an earthquake. Boxes and tools had fallen off shelves into a jumbled mass on the floor, and there was a hole in the back wall.

Despite the damage, neither Cossich, his wife nor his daughter were injured.

“Thank God for that,” Cossich said. “Our nerves are a bit rattled, though.”

A crew from AAA Advanced Tree Experts were quick to cut up the downed trees and clean up the mess. But it wouldn’t be able to rest.

The tree service’s owner, Brandon Crowe, said as soon as they were finished with the Cossich home, they had to go remove a tree that had fallen on a home in the Turtle Creek subdivision off Military Road.

Cossich said that insurance will pay for the damage to the house and shed, but he would have to pay for the broken windshield on his truck.

“I only had liability on the truck, and they won’t pay for the windshield,” Cossich explained.

He said he would break out the FEMA blue tarps and put them over the hole in his roof until he can get roofers in for repairs.


Comments

2 comment(s)

    Lauren wrote on May 23, 2008 4:38 PM:

    " Actually, I disagree William! People are still dwelling on what happened during hurricane Katrina..... this man's story is just as important as any other persons story before, during and after Katrina! "

    William wrote on May 18, 2008 3:45 PM:

    " Im sorry, I mean this is pretty bad for this one man... but this isnt quite news worthy. Lets not forget that just a couple years ago people had more than just three things destroyed by falling trees and wind. It makes no sense to report on one case, and treat it as an anomaly, then to ignore all other instances of this occurring in the local area. "

WRITE A COMMENT

Use the form below to post a brief comment to this story, or respond to other readers. Please use the word count tool to assist you in keeping your remarks to 100 words or fewer.

Comment posters are responsible for the opinions they express and the accuracy of the information they provide. We urge comment writers to treat this as a public forum where manners matter. We encourage a collegial, non-insulting tone. All readers comments must be approved by our staff before posting to the Web site. They review submitted comments periodically during the day for offensive or off-topic content before posting. Be aware, in accordance with the Communications Decency Act and provisions upheld in judicial appeal, that you are responsible for comments posted on this Web site. The St. Tammany News is not liable for messages from third parties.

DO NOT POST:
* Potentially libelous statements or damaging innuendo.
* Obscene, explicit, or racist language.
* Personal attacks, insults or threats.
* The use of another person's real name to disguise your identity.
* Comments unrelated to the story.
* Personal Information (phone numbers, addresses, etc.)

Opinions, advice and all other information expressed in thesttammanynews.com's reader comments represent the individual's own views and not necessarily those of the St. Tammany News. The St. Tammany News does not endorse and is not responsible for statements, advice or opinions offered by anyone other than authorized St. Tammany News spokespersons.

Your thoughtful contribution to the online discussion is appreciated.

(optional)
Current Word Count: