Storm damage in Newark, Delaware caused by straight-line winds, NWS says
NEWARK, Del. (CBS) -- Dozens of homes in New Castle County, Delaware were damaged or destroyed by falling trees and strong winds on Monday night.
The National Weather Service says straight-line winds caused the damage.
New Castle County officials estimate at least 50 homes were damaged, including several that are uninhabitable.
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In one neighborhood in Newark, whipping winds toppled several trees – smashing cars and tossing branches into homes.
Now, the cleanup begins.
"We heard all this noise and looked out -- the trees down, the poles down -- it was real quick," Michele Herbster said.
As crews used a saw to cut through a massive tree trunk that fell onto West Cherokee Road in Newark, Herbster looked at the path of destruction left in her neighborhood after a fast-moving storm hit the area Monday night.
"My whole deck is totally destroyed," Herbster said. "I have to replace a whole deck, not sure about the roof yet."
Some of the trees that fell nearly hit those who were inside their homes.
"That tree in the back of my house hit my room," Jenna Luna said.
Luna showed CBS News Philadelphia inside her second-floor bedroom that's now covered with insulation after a tree came down.
"There was just one sudden gust of wind, I looked out in the dining room and all of the trees in one swift movement just fell," Luna said.
"We are here to support the people in every way," New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer said.
Meyer met with some of the owners of the more than 50 homes that were damaged. A half dozen are uninhabitable.
"The devastation is humbling," Meyer said.
But, what resources are out there for homeowners going through all this?
"The first level of protection is homeowners insurance," Meyer said. "Then after that there's a wide variety of federal state and local programs. If anyone has any questions they can call my office."
"Most importantly we got to take care of people. Make sure our neighbors are OK," he added.
Even with all this damage, there were no fatalities and only one person injured.
