A Columbus neighborhood rumbles as Tropical Storm Irma topples a mighty pine

September 11, 2017 Columbus - A fallen tree damaged two cars at Monica Ogle's home on Dearborn Ave in west of Columbus on Monday, September 11, 2017. He had to move his car to a safe parking spot. The Georgia coast was hit hard Monday morning, with pounding rains, roaring winds and storm surge. More than 87,000 Georgia Power customers were without power in the Savannah area, as were another 96,000 from Brunswick and St. Simons south to St. Marys, at the Florida line. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

September 11, 2017 Columbus - A fallen tree damaged two cars at Monica Ogle's home on Dearborn Ave in west of Columbus on Monday, September 11, 2017. He had to move his car to a safe parking spot. The Georgia coast was hit hard Monday morning, with pounding rains, roaring winds and storm surge. More than 87,000 Georgia Power customers were without power in the Savannah area, as were another 96,000 from Brunswick and St. Simons south to St. Marys, at the Florida line. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM

It was beginning to smell a lot like Christmas outside Monica Ogle's house.

The scent was coming off a giant pine that looked to be 100 feet tall. It was lying across her driveway, or, to be more specific, across her fiancé's car.

The back of the silver Dodge Caliber was smashed by the tree, whose shallow roots had come unfixed from her neighbor's yard. She didn't hear it tumble but she felt it meet the ground.

"You could feel the rumble,' said Ogle, 25.

It was one of the many trees that fell victim to Tropical Storm Irma in this part of southwest Georgia. The storm had, thankfully, already taken out power at Ogle's house a few hours before it took out this tree. It fell around 2 p.m., ripping the power line from her roof and leaving it dangling low over the street.

September 11, 2017 Columbus - Monica Ogle watches a fallen tree damaged her and her finance's cars at their home in west of Columbus on Monday, September 11, 2017. He had to move his car to a safe parking spot. About 30,000 customers lost power in Columbus. HYOSUB SHIN / HSHIN@AJC.COM

Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

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Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC

Cars zip down this neighborhood road at 50 m.p.h., she said, and could easily smash into the wires. Indeed, one did, dragging a wire down the road.

She said Georgia Power told her it would take a while to get to this incident and after 5 p.m. the tangle of wires was still hanging over the road. The company had so many other more urgent calls to deal with: the storm took out power to about 30,000 customers in Columbus.

Ogle was thankful the tree didn't reach her house, where her daughter, 6, was weathering the storm with her.

In other Irma news: