First, the things that will hurt somebody

After a storm a property has two categories of problem: what is broken, and what is still moving. The second one is the emergency. A partially uprooted tree with a lifted root plate, a limb hung up in the canopy, a trunk split at a codominant union — all of those are loaded and can come the rest of the way down with no warning and no wind.

Call us and stay out from under it. If there is a line involved, call the power company first — energized conductors are utility work, and we will not go near them.

What we handle

• Trees down on roofs, garages, vehicles, and fences

• Uprooted and leaning trees with a lifted root plate

• Hangers and broken limbs suspended in the canopy

• Split trunks and failed unions still standing

• Driveways, access roads, and gates cleared so you can get in and out

• Whole-property debris cleanup, chipping, and hauling

Why pines fail the way they do here

The Midlands is loblolly country, and loblolly is a tall, top-heavy tree with a shallow plate of roots in sandy soil. That combination fails in a specific pattern: saturated ground from days of rain, then wind, and the whole root plate tips rather than the trunk breaking. It is why you see so many pines down after a tropical system and comparatively few after a dry-ground thunderstorm. Ice is the other one — loblolly limbs load with ice and shear at the collar.

If you have big pines close to the house and you want to know which ones are actually a problem, that is a tree health assessment, and it is a much better conversation to have in March than at eleven o'clock at night in September.

Your insurance file

Before anything moves, we photograph it: the tree, the point of contact, the damage, and the property from several angles. You get those photos. Carriers generally cover removal when a tree has struck a covered structure, and generally do not when a healthy tree simply fell in your yard and hit nothing — but the policy governs, we are not adjusters, and we will not tell you what is covered. What we will do is make sure you are not arguing about it later without pictures.

Tarping and making it dry

If the roof is open we can tarp it as a temporary measure so the next band of rain does not turn a roof claim into a ceiling-and-floor claim. That is a stopgap until a roofer gets there, and we will say so plainly.

Then the ground

Storm work leaves ruts, torn turf, a root crater, and often a drainage pattern that changed when the tree left. We handle the stump, regrading, drainage, and replanting once the emergency is over.

Where we do this work

We respond to storm damage in Columbia, Lexington, Irmo, Blythewood, West Columbia and Cayce, and the rest of our Richland, Lexington, and Kershaw county service area.

The Arborist Division

Tree work runs as its own division inside Magnolia Outdoor Services, with its own climbing gear, rigging, saws, and crew. That matters on a property because the tree is rarely the whole job. The stump, the ruts, the bare ground where the canopy used to be, and the drainage that changes once a big pine is gone all land on the same company. One walk-through, one scope, one crew that cleans up after itself.

We carry general liability and workers' compensation coverage, and we will send you the certificates before we set foot on the property. Ask every tree company you call for both. Tree work is the highest-risk trade that regularly operates in a residential backyard, and if an uninsured crew gets hurt on your lot, that exposure can land on your homeowner's policy.

Call (803) 343-9655 or request an estimate. Every project starts with a walk-through and a written scope.