Tree removal crane topples into two Chattanooga homes [photos]

A truck with a crane doing tree work on the North Shore toppled over into two homes this afternoon.
A truck with a crane doing tree work on the North Shore toppled over into two homes this afternoon.

A truck with a crane doing tree work on the North Shore toppled over into two homes Friday afternoon.

A crew with the Chattanooga Tree Service was removing a tree from the yard of Derrick Hatter when the truck fell into his house while lifting a log. The neck of the crane fell into the house next door.

No one was home at the time of the incident, but Hatter was heading back to check on the work, he said.

"I was coming to check and make sure everything was alright," he said. "It must have just happened as I was getting home."

Company owner John Pratt was on scene. He declined to offer details but has been in communication with the home owner and an insurance company.

"Nobody was hurt. That's most important. Things can be fixed," he said.

Residents in the area around the site will be without power while crews remove the crane from the homes. Barton Ave. is closed between the 600 block and the intersection of McFarland Ave. Two other cranes will be used to remove the crane from the homes.

Hatter said he was told a crew was working to lift a tree with the crane when the truck started to turn over. A worker was on a lift by the crane, and their priority was getting that worker to safety as the incident occurred, Hatter said.

He has lived in the home for four or five years with his family but has owned the home longer.

"No one is hurt, that's the important thing," he said.

Contact staff writer Mark Pace at mpace@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6361. Follow him on Twitter @themarkpace and on Facebook @ChattanoogaOutdoors.

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