‘We ended up losing everything’: Woodland home hit twice by falling trees during storms

IT’S HARD NOT TO HAVE THE THINGS THAT ARE IMPORTANT TO YOU. IT’S HARD TO LOSE YOUR FAMILY MEMENTOS. DECEMBER 31ST OF 2022 IS A DAY STACY MOUNCE SAYS HER FAMILY LOST EVERYTHING WHEN WE DROVE UP AND THERE WAS A 40 TON CEDAR THAT WAS ON THE HOUSE AND THEY HAD JUST MOVED INTO THE WOODLAND HOME. THEY HAD ONLY LIVED THERE FOR 36 HOURS WHEN A TREE DESTROYED IT DURING A WINTER STORM. IT CRUSHED THE WHOLE CEILING. THE LIVING ROOM, THE DINING ROOM NOT ONLY THAT, IT EXPOSED ASBESTOS IN THE WALLS AND ROOF THAT NIGHT, MOUNCE WALKED AWAY FROM HER HOME WITH ONLY TWO BACKPACKS FOR HER KIDS. WE ENDED UP LOSING EVERYTHING IN THE HOUSE AND THE HOUSE, AND IT’S BEEN, YOU KNOW, PROCESS SINCE THEN. AFTER A YEAR OF CHALLENGES, THEY GOT A CITY PERMIT TO REBUILD LAST JULY, AND THE FAMILY HOPED TO FINALLY ENJOY THEIR NEW HOME THIS COMING APRIL. BUT THEN CAME AN UNEXPECTED CALL FROM THEIR NEIGHBOR THIS PAST SUNDAY. SHE CALLED ME AND SAID, YOU KNOW I LOVE YOU, BUT. BUT I HAVE SOME BAD NEWS FOR YOU. A TREE FELL ON YOUR HOUSE AGAIN AND I WAS LIKE, NO WAY. THE NEWS SEEMED UNREAL. TWO TREES LANDING ON HER HOME IN JUST OVER A YEAR, THEY WERE GETTING READY TO PUT A NEW ROOF ON, AND SO NOW IT KIND OF PAUSES THINGS, MOUNCE TELLS KCRA THREE. REBUILDING HER HOME WAS ALREADY A LONG PROCESS. ONCE YOU COME UP WITH A PLAN FOR HOW TO FIX IT, THEN IT’S THE LONG WAITING GAME FOR THE PERMITS. THIS BRINGS MORE UNCERTAINTY ABOUT WHAT OTHER PERMITS SHE MIGHT NEED AND HOW LONG IT WILL TAKE HER INSURANCE COMPANY TO PROCESS HER NEW CLAIM FOR THE INSURANCE PEOPLE. LIKE, WE’RE JUST LIKE A NUMBER, RIGHT? AND I’M LIKE, YEAH, LIKE, THIS IS MY LIFE. LIKE, THIS IS MY CHILDREN’S WHERE WE LIVE, AND IT’S ALL OF MY CHILDREN’S THINGS. AND IT’S, YOU KNOW, IT’S HARD TO FEEL LIKE YOU’RE JUST A NUMBER TO SOMEBODY ELSE WHEN YOU’RE GOING THROUGH SOMETHING THAT IS SUCH A, LIKE, TRAUMATIC EXPERIENCE. MOUNCE DOESN’T KNOW WHEN HER FAMILY WILL FINALLY BE ABLE TO GO BACK HOME. BUT THROUGH IT ALL, SHE STILL FINDS REASONS TO BE GRATEFUL. I TRY TO HAVE A GOOD ATTITUDE ABOUT IT AND FEEL BLESSED IN THE FACT THAT, YOU KNOW, MY KIDS ARE SAFE AND WE’RE NOT HURT, AND WE’RE GOING TO EVENTUALLY BE ABLE TO LIVE HERE, BUT IT’S CERTAINLY HAS. BEEN A CHALLENGING THING DURING THE COURSE OF THE YEAR. MOUNCE IS STILL WAITING TO HEAR BACK FROM THE CITY ABOUT THE PROCESS SHE NEEDS TO FOLLOW TO GET PERMITS TO REPAIR THE NEW DAMAGES CAUSED BY THE TREE. IN THE MEANTIME, THEY’RE STILL RENTING A PLACE TO LIVE WHILE FIGURING EVERYTHING OUT. CAROLINA. WE JUST FEEL FOR THIS FAMILY. HOW LONG DOES IT TYPICALLY TAKE FOR WOODLAND TO THE CITY TO ISSUE A PERMIT? EDIE, THE CITY OF WOODLAND TELLS ME IN TOTAL, IT COULD TAKE UP TO 20 WORKING DAYS SINCE THEY DO TWO BUILDING PLAN REVIEWS. HOWEVER, MINOR PROJECTS LIKE A KITCHEN OR A BATHROOM REMODEL CAN BE APPROVED IN LESS THAN FIVE DAYS. BUT IT’S ALL GOING TO DEPEND ON HOW DETAILED AND COMPLETE THE PLANS THE RESIDENT SUBMITS ARE. THEY HAVE ALREADY BEEN THROUGH SO MUCH

‘We ended up losing everything’: Woodland home hit twice by falling trees during storms

The family was still rebuilding from a tree that hit their home in December 2022.

Updated: 11:06 PM PST Feb 9, 2024

Stacey Mounce remembers Dec. 31, 2022, as the day her family lost everything. Mounce and her family had just moved into their new home in Woodland. They had only lived there for 26 hours when a giant cedar tree destroyed it during a winter storm. Not only did the tree damage the ceiling, living room, dining room, but it exposed asbestos in the walls and roof. That night, she walked away from her home with only two backpacks for her kids. “We ended up losing everything in the house and the house. It’s been a process since then,” Mounce said. After a year of challenges, they got a permit to rebuild last July, and the family finally hoped to enjoy their new home this coming April. Until they got a call from a neighbor telling them another tree fell on their home last Sunday. “They were getting ready to put a new roof on so now it pauses things,” Mounce said. Rebuilding her home was already a long process, and this brought more uncertainty about what other permits she might need, and how long it will take her insurance company to process her new claim. “For the insurance people, we are just like a number and I’m like, This is my life. It’s where we live.’ It’s hard to feel like a number when you go through such a traumatic experience, ” Mounce said.How long does it take to get a building permit from Woodland?The city of Woodland told KCRA 3 that a building plan review usually takes 15 working days for the first review and five additional working days for resubmittals. Minor projects like kitchen and bathroom remodels are usually approved in less than five days, but it all depends on how complete and detailed the plans are. See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app.

WOODLAND, Calif. —

Stacey Mounce remembers Dec. 31, 2022, as the day her family lost everything.

Mounce and her family had just moved into their new home in Woodland. They had only lived there for 26 hours when a giant cedar tree destroyed it during a winter storm.

Not only did the tree damage the ceiling, living room, dining room, but it exposed asbestos in the walls and roof. That night, she walked away from her home with only two backpacks for her kids.

“We ended up losing everything in the house and the house. It’s been a process since then,” Mounce said.

After a year of challenges, they got a permit to rebuild last July, and the family finally hoped to enjoy their new home this coming April.

Until they got a call from a neighbor telling them another tree fell on their home last Sunday.

“They were getting ready to put a new roof on so now it pauses things,” Mounce said.

Rebuilding her home was already a long process, and this brought more uncertainty about what other permits she might need, and how long it will take her insurance company to process her new claim.

“For the insurance people, we are just like a number and I’m like, This is my life. It’s where we live.’ It’s hard to feel like a number when you go through such a traumatic experience, ” Mounce said.

How long does it take to get a building permit from Woodland?

The city of Woodland told KCRA 3 that a building plan review usually takes 15 working days for the first review and five additional working days for resubmittals.

Minor projects like kitchen and bathroom remodels are usually approved in less than five days, but it all depends on how complete and detailed the plans are.

See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app.