How to Guard Against the Threat of Falling Trees During Storms

While most people understand the dangers of tornadoes, the threat of falling trees is not something that is on many minds during times of severe weather. However, falling trees are responsible for several deaths each year in the U.S. Here is a closer look at this hidden danger and how you can protect yourself from the threat.

Understanding the Threat of Falling Trees During Severe Weather Events

The recent rash of severe weather is a reminder of the risk of falling trees. You only have to go back to the morning of March 16 to learn of two young boys who were killed when a tree crashed into their home. The 11-year-old and 13-year-old brothers were asleep when the tree, measuring three feet in diameter, was uprooted by a storm and fell onto their beds.

Death by falling trees is more common than you may think. This is because the numbers are severely underreported. The National Weather Service (NWS) does not keep official statistics of this weather event, making it more difficult to track the true scope of the problem.
 
The weather reporting agency does track deaths connected to wind events, the most common culprit of falling trees. Wind was responsible for at least 71 deaths and over 200 injures in the U.S. in the year 2023. According to the NWS, the 10-year annual average for wind-related fatalities is 57.

Of the 71 deaths by wind in 2023, seven happened in people sheltering in mobile homes and nine were reported in permanent homes. Fourteen of the deaths happened in vehicles. Of the confirmed fatalities, four were youths under the age of 10 while four more happened to elderly individuals in their 80s.

According to the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) out of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), there were over 16,000 reports of storms packing high winds in the U.S. in 2024. Wind speeds of 60 mph are capable of bringing down trees. These speeds are common during times of severe thunderstorms, nor'easters, and tropical weather events.

Strong winds that have the power to send trees to the ground are also common in derechos. These long-lived lines of thunderstorms are likely to generate damaging wind gusts that stretch for over 250 miles. Not surprisingly, winds of this magnitude and scope of impact can uproot thousands of trees in their path.

Trees can also fall and cause damage or loss of life during other types of weather events. Ice storms and flooding events are the most common culprits behind severe thunderstorms and tropical weather.

Falling trees are also a greater danger when an area has been saturated by heavy rain. Overly saturated grounds make trees more vulnerable to losing their grip on their soil. Wet soil is not able to secure the roots of a tree in the ground as well as dry soil. In this case, it just takes one strong wind gust to bring a tree down to the ground.

All you have to do is go back to last September's Hurricane Helene to understand this threat. According to the National Hurricane Center (NHC), of the 65 fatalities attributed to winds during this widespread tropical weather event, 61 were blamed on falling trees.

This tragic number made Hurricane Helene the leader in wind-related deaths in the mainland U.S. from a tropical storm or hurricane over the last 60 years. In addition, falling trees were responsible for more lives lost than all of the tornado-related deaths in 2024.

Weather experts also warn that it does not have to be a monster storm for trees to come down. Sometimes, the branches can come loose during the early stages of a storm when the winds first begin to whip around.

How to Protect Yourself From Falling Trees

While the danger of falling trees is highly unpredictable, there are steps that you can take to reduce your risk of becoming a victim to this power of Mother Nature. It is important to take the threat of severe thunderstorms seriously. Just as you would seek shelter during a tornado warning, you should do the same during a severe thunderstorm warning. It is never a good idea to be positioned near windows when a storm is raging outside.

Should you get caught in a thunderstorm while in a vehicle, you should make every effort to pull over and find shelter. Pulling over underneath a highway overpass is the best strategy if you cannot get to a sturdy structure.

Enabling weather notifications on your smartphone will ensure that you do not miss a warning. This is particularly important if severe storms are expected in your area under the cover of darkness. Many deaths from falling trees happen when people are asleep and unaware of what is happening outside.

Lastly, you should also take note of the stability and health of the trees surrounding your home. A yearly inspection by a trained arborist will alert you to any potential issues that make your trees more susceptible to falling during times of high winds or severe weather. Trees that are leaning toward the home are an inherent danger.

The important thing heading into the heart of the severe weather season is to be aware of this hidden danger so that you do not become a tragic statistic.

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