Downed tree breaks radiator during windy Whidbey weekend

Published 12:51 pm Wednesday, February 19, 2014

A tree knocked down by high winds over the weekend poked through the front-end of a car, damaging its radiator.

The driver, a man, was not injured in the crash on Maxwelton Road near Rivendell Road. Upon impact, the reportedly dead tree splintered.

“It was lucky it was a dead tree,” said South Whidbey Fire/EMS Chief Rusty Palmer.

Wind gusts reached 47 mph around Whidbey Island, with wind speeds measured up to 36 mph.

The fire protection district responded to 15 calls Saturday and 12 calls Sunday, many of which were related to tree branches blown onto streets. None of the calls involved injury or damage to homes.

“All of the calls were timed where we’d clear from one then head off to the next one,” Palmer said.

One call was about a car off the road on Lone Lake Road early Saturday morning. The car was reported the night before, but no driver was found when emergency responders arrived and no signs of injury were seen inside the car.