Tornado and High Wind Tree Damage in Kansas City: What to Do After a Severe Storm
Short answer: After a tornado or a severe windstorm, make people safe first, treat every downed wire as live and call the utility, then photograph all the damage before anything is moved. Call a tree service for trees on the house or blocking the drive; emergency removal of a tree on a house typically runs $1,500 to $5,000 or more, and insurance usually covers trees that land on a covered structure.
When the sirens stop and you walk outside to trees down across the yard, here is what to do, in order.
On this page (13 sections)
- The First 30 Minutes
- Document Before You Clean
- What Emergency Removal Costs
- Save or Remove?
- Response Times After a Big Storm
- Storm Chasers
- Insurance
- A Tree Between You and a Neighbor
- Cleanup After the Emergency
- Why You Should Not Cut Storm Trees Yourself
- What We Do on the First Visit
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Related Reading
The First 30 Minutes
- Check on everyone. Stay out of damaged rooms.
- Treat every downed wire as live. Call 911 and the utility.
- Smell gas? Leave and call from outside.
- Do not go under trees with hanging limbs.
Who to Call First
- A wire down or a tree on a line: the utility, and 911 if anyone is in danger.
- A tree across a public street: 911 if it blocks traffic dangerously, otherwise your city (311 in Kansas City, Missouri).
- A tree or a big limb on the house, a car, or across your driveway: a tree service with an emergency line.
- Damage to the house itself: your insurance company, after the photos.
Document Before You Clean
Photograph the trees, the damage, and where everything landed, from several angles, before anything is moved. Keep every receipt from that day on.
What Emergency Removal Costs
- Tree on house, limbs only: $1,500 to $3,500
- Tree on house, full removal: $2,500 to $5,000+
- Tree on a vehicle or outbuilding: $1,200 to $3,500
Crane work, needed when a tree is too tangled in a structure for rope rigging, adds $1,200 to $3,000. These prices reflect the risk and the hours.
Save or Remove?
A tree with a few broken limbs can often be cleaned up and kept. A tree with a split trunk, roots torn out on one side, or a fresh lean usually has to go. Some split trees can be held with cabling and bracing. A hazardous tree evaluation or an arborist visit settles it.
Can an Uprooted Tree Be Stood Back Up?
A small, young tree that tipped over in soft ground can sometimes be pulled back up, staked and watered, and many survive. A large tree whose root plate has lifted out of the ground cannot be saved safely. Even if it is pulled upright, the broken roots will not hold it in the next storm.
Response Times After a Big Storm
Trees on homes and trees blocking roads go first. Everything else is scheduled as crews free up, often over a week or two after a major event.
Storm Chasers
Be careful with anyone who knocks on your door, wants cash or a big deposit, or cannot show proof of insurance.
Insurance
Policies typically cover trees that fall on your home, garage, shed or fence, and the cost to remove them, often up to a set amount per tree. Trees that fall and hit nothing are usually not covered. Wind and hail claims have their own deductibles; read your declarations page.
A Tree Between You and a Neighbor
In general, the insurance of the property that was damaged pays, unless the tree was obviously dead or dangerous beforehand and the owner had been told. Talk to both insurers early.
Cleanup After the Emergency
Once the dangerous trees are down, the rest is scheduled: tree removal, stump grinding, and pruning damaged trees that can stay. Our storm recovery service covers all of it.
Why You Should Not Cut Storm Trees Yourself
Storm-downed trees are full of stored tension. A limb pinned under another limb, or a trunk bent to the ground, can spring back with enough force to break bones when it is cut. Hangers (broken limbs caught up in the crown) fall without warning. Homeowners with chainsaws get hurt every storm season. Clearing small brush on the ground is fine; leave anything bent, hung up or touching the house to a crew.
What We Do on the First Visit
When a tree is on a house, the first job is to make it safe: take the weight off the roof, cut the tree off the structure, and clear the way into the house and the drive. The full cleanup, grinding and pruning of damaged trees that can stay usually comes on a second visit. You get the photos and a written description of the work for your insurance claim.
Frequently Asked Questions
A large tree limb fell and is blocking my driveway. Who should I call in Kansas City?
If no wires are involved, a tree service with an emergency line. If a wire is down or tangled in the limb, call the utility first and stay away from it.
Does homeowners insurance pay for storm damage tree removal?
Usually, when a tree falls on a covered structure such as the house, a garage or a fence, often up to a set limit per tree. A tree that falls and hits nothing usually is not covered.
How fast can a tree service come after a big storm?
Trees on homes and trees blocking roads go first. Everything else is scheduled as crews free up, often over a week or two after a major storm.
Related Reading
Kansas City Tree Care is a family-owned tree service in Kansas City, and our emergency line is answered 24/7 at 913-894-4767. Read our reviews on Google Maps, or see the homepage for everything we do.
About Kansas City Tree Care
Kansas City Tree Care was founded in 1996 by Zach Johnson, who has worked in the tree trade since 1990. Our crews cover more than 30 cities across the Kansas City metro from our office at 1505 Merriam Lane in Kansas City, KS.