Tree splits Chartiers Township mobile home down the middle
Jon Andreassi/ Observer-Reporter
The hole in Richard Earliwine’s mobile home has since been covered by plywood and a large tarp.
Courtesy of Earliwine family
A tree toppled during last weekend’s storm, sending a tree into Richard Earliwine’s home.
A violent storm that swept through Washington County last weekend brought a tree down straight through the middle of a Chartiers Township mobile home.
Richard Earliwine was at his Welsh Road home at the time the tree fell, at about 2 p.m. July 23. He stepped outside to wind up his porch canopy during the storm.
“I don’t know why I looked up. I didn’t hear the tree come at me. I bolted out of the way. The tree came down across the trailer and cut it in half,” Earliwine said Thursday.
Earliwine’s wife was away at the time, and their dog and cat were inside but uninjured.
The Chartiers Fire Department responded. According to Earliwine, the department suggested the family find another place to stay. The Red Cross also assisted, giving the Earliwine family a $500 prepaid debit card and offering to put them up in a hotel.
Earliwine, however, decided to stay to continue the work to clean up the debris and take care of the animals. The hole left by the tree has since been covered by plywood and a tarp.
“We were fortunate in the sense that it hit nothing important. The wires had enough give,” Earliwine said. “I felt all the wires for nicks, cuts, whatever. I found a couple nicks that I taped up, but nothing exposed. So we’re doing what we got to do right now until we can get everything in a pile, make a move.”
The mobile home is damaged beyond repair, according to Earliwine. They will have the home hauled away and replaced.
“We wanted a new place, but just not like this,” Earliwine said.