Huntsville man claims city responsible for storm damage

Two trees on city property fell onto a Huntsville home in storms early Wednesday.

Now, the man who owns the home said the city isn’t cleaning up the damage.

“My wife woke me up in the middle of the night,” Huntsville homeowner Rian White said. “She thought someone was breaking into the house.”

ABC 17 News Meteorologist said the overnight storm Tuesday into Wednesday brought peak wind gusts between 20-30 mph and between 1-1.5 inches of rain to the Huntsville area.

The two trees fell from the culvert next to the Whites’ home onto their deck and gazebo, piercing through their new gazebo cover.

“When we got up and assessed the damage this morning, it was a little more than what we were expecting to see,” Rian White said.

The culvert on the side of the White’s home carries the stormwater. White said during heavy rainfall it can flood the lower level of his backyard.

White said the city has spent three years working on the culvert and finished its work this spring.

He said when his wife went into the city to tell them about the fallen trees, the city said it is not their property.

But this isn’t the first time White said he’s dealt with city trees falling onto his property — it also happened about two months ago, he said.

White said after the last tree fell onto their property they also informed the city. White said at that time the city agreed to having someone come out, assess the damage and see what it would take to fix it, but that never happened.

ABC 17 News was not able to get comment from city officials despite several attempts.