It was a night of wild weather for Metro Vancouver and a terrifying night for one Port Coquitlam man.
Jeff and Donna Clee were lying in bed when an 8,000 pound tree came crashing through their roof and landed on their bed at 11 p.m. Monday.
Donna did not suffer any injuries but her husband is in hospital with a spinal injury. He was knocked unconscious immediately after the crash.
“When he didn’t answer I thought he was dead,” says Donna.
Less than two months ago a Port Moody woman was killed in her bed after a tree also smashed through her roof during a windstorm.
“We’ve been concerned about this for several years now,” adds one neighbour who couldn’t believe what had happened.
“As far as I know the city has done nothing about it,” says another neighbour.
Residents say the trees, which are on city property, are too tall and too unstable; but the city says this was a freak accident.
“Our initial investigation is showing us that the lightning did in fact strike the tree caused it to split about half way down,” says Kristen Meersman with the city’s Engineering and Public Works.
However, the arborist hired by the lease insurance company says he is not sure yet what caused the tree to fall.
WATCH: Residents of one Port Coquitlam house are lucky to be alive after a tree was knocked down during a lightning storm Monday night. Grace Ke has more details.
The city says it has a tree inspection program in place, and there is no record of any concerns about the tree that came crashing down.
The lightning lit up the Vancouver skyline in quite a display Monday night and people shared images and updates on social media.
Vancouver saw record temperatures on Monday with highs of nearly 30 degrees in some places.
But the forecast looks much calmer tonight, with only showers expected.
With files from Rumina Daya
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