Tree Falls On Pleasanton Church; No One Injured

PLEASANTON, CA — Seventeen people escaped injury after a large tree fell on top of the Lighthouse Baptist Church on Second and Neal streets in Pleasanton Tuesday afternoon, as ferocious gusts knocked down trees and wires across the Tri-Valley.

The large tree smashed and flattered two classrooms from the nursery and toddler wing at about 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, when young students were in the church school on the other side of the building, according to Pastor Bill Bryson. The tree also fell onto the home of neighbor Jeff Meier, but no one was hurt, ABC-7 reported.

The tree narrowly missed the church’s administrative offices, Bryson said. The main structure of the church is intact, and services will be conducted as usual as the church finds a new place for its toddlers, who stay there during church services.

“Praise the Lord it wasn’t Sunday, because that would be a whole other story,” Bryson told Patch. “The rest of the structure’s fine.”

Students and staff stayed in place as emergency services assessed the situation and removed the tree. The area is now closed off as the church negotiates with their insurance company and contractors.

Bryson said his wife and the church secretary were inside the building and heard the fall. “They said it was very loud and a jolt, kind of like an earthquake,” he said. KTVU uploaded dramatic footage of the tree falling on YouTube.

Trees fell all over Pleasanton Tuesday as gusts of over 50 mph tore through the city. Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department Battalion Chief Jim Artman told Patch Tuesday evening that his department responded to over 80 calls for service, including multiple rescues, structure fires, and powerlines down.

“The city has activated the Emergency Operation Center, and the various city departments are doing damage assessment on the extent of the damage from the wind event,” Artman said in an email sent Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. “There are multiple structures in both Pleasanton and Livermore that have sustained significant damage from trees coming down and flying debris.”

City spokesperson Heather Tiernan told Patch that the city responded to 97 incidents Tuesday and Wednesday, including one injury report that occurred when a tree fell onto a residential garage. Other reports included downed trees and power lines, damaged buildings, blocked roadways, and traffic lights that were out. The city deployed extra crews Tuesday, but resumed normal staffing Wednesday.

Seven structures were reported as moderately damaged and requiring repairs, but no buildings were posted as unsafe to occupy within the city jurisdiction. "Most of the damage was relatively minor and did not compromise buildings," Tiernan said.

As of Wednesday afternoon, no city-maintained roads are closed. Alameda County closed Pleasanton Sunol Road at Castlewood Drive, but expects that to reopen by the end of Thursday.

Despite a never-ending stream of service calls, residents say the department was able to clear most of the trees and debris out of the way quickly.

Resident Ken Mano found a tree down in front of his house on Mohr Avenue. “ It went down about 1:30, we were not home and were surprised when we got home, luckily it went into the street and not toward our house,” he told Patch in an email. “Our neighbor called the city and was told they didn't know when they would get there since trees were down all over the city. They came about 3pm and it’s all removed at 5:30. [There are] still some piles next to the street but kudos to the maintenance folks, they did an amazing job.”

Thousands of residents in Pleasanton have also been without power for over 24 hours as of 3:30 p.m., one of the East Bay’s longest and largest outages. At least 3,143 Pleasanton residents are still without power, an outage that PG&E expects to be resolved around 6 p.m. Wednesday. Livermore, which endured some of the strongest winds, saw similarly large outages Tuesday, but power was mostly restored by the evening.

Hearst Elementary School, Vintage Hills Elementary School and Pleasanton Middle School lost power, and school was canceled at those sites Wednesday, according to PUSD spokesperson Patrick Gannon. Downed trees were also reported at Pleasanton Middle School and Amador Valley High School, though school is in session wherever there is power, Gannon said.

The city also closed its Permit and Business License Center and classes at the Pleasanton Senior Center Wednesday, though its lunch program remained available through curbside pickup.

To report downed trees, flooding, or other weather-related hazards, call the Pleasanton Operations Services Department at 924-931-5500 from 7 a.m. until 4 p.m., or email osd@cityofpleasantonca.gov.

To report downed power lines and electrical wires, call PG&E at 1-800-743-5000. For emergencies, call 911.