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Risk of falling trees, branches not over after winter storm

Tree expert Dash Schenck advises people to look for broken branches or signs of damage that could make a tree susceptible to falling over.

LAKE OSWEGO, Ore. — Downed trees are bringing all kinds of trouble for homeowners after a winter storm blasted the Portland area over the weekend.

It's the combination of wet soil, wind and all that ice on the trees that is simply weighting them down.

Tom Andes spent Tuesday morning cutting up a huge section of tree that fell into his yard the night before. It barely missed his house. He knows the risk of falling trees and branches is not over.

"We're still hearing cracking," he said as he looked around in his Lake Oswego backyard.

"There's still risk, a lot of risk actually," said Dash Schenck with the Davey Tree Expert Company. "Look up at your trees because there are probably broken branches waiting for just a little bit of a gust of wind to bring them down."

Now is the time to examine the trees on your property.

Look for any broken branches, cracks in the trunks and bigger limbs or any signs of lifting round the base of the tree.

Also, look up before you parallel park. You don't want to be parking under a branch that's about to break.

"I think the worst of it has passed," said Schenck. "But that doesn't mean we're in the clear."

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