Tree Service in Pilot Point, TX

Pilot Point knows what a bad storm does to trees. On the night of May 25, 2024, a tornado that touched down near Valley View in Cooke County crossed Lake Ray Roberts and lifted just west of Pilot Point at 11:15 p.m. It was rated EF3 with peak winds near 140 mph, traveled more than 48 miles and was up to 1.7 miles wide. Seven people died. Along the path, trees were uprooted and snapped, many at the weaker EF0 to EF1 intensity on the edges. A lot of the Tree Service work around Pilot Point since then has been dealing with trees that survived that night but were damaged.

Trees that look fine but are not

Storm damage is not always obvious. A tree can stay standing and leaf out the next spring and still be hurt. Here is what we look for on trees that were in or near a storm path:

• Cracks in the trunk or at the base of large limbs, sometimes only visible from one side
• Root plate movement, shown by a new lean, raised soil or torn roots on one side
• Hangers, broken limbs caught higher in the crown
• Twisted or split tops where the wind spun the crown
• Bark peeled away where debris hit the trunk, which invites decay later

Any of these on a tree that could reach a house, a road or a barn calls for a closer look.

Lake country to the west

Ray Roberts Lake, about 29,350 acres, sits between Pilot Point and Sanger, with Ray Roberts Lake State Park around it. Properties toward the lake are more rural, with native woods, fence lines and pasture trees. In town, around the Pilot Point Commercial Historic District listed in 2023 and the older streets near it, yards have big pecans, elms and hackberries that may be several decades old. The two settings call for different plans: assessment and selective removal on acreage, careful pruning and sectional removals in town.

Insurance and documentation

If a storm damages your trees, photograph everything before it is moved: the tree, what it hit and the stump or root plate if it went over. Many homeowners' policies treat a tree that falls on a covered structure differently from one that falls in open yard. We provide a written estimate that lists each tree and the work separately, which makes it easier to share with an adjuster.

Planning for the next one

You cannot storm-proof a tree, but you can lower the odds of failure. Removing dead limbs, reducing long heavy limbs, correcting weak forks on young trees and taking out trees with serious decay before storm season all help. The town's motto is "Pointing the way since 1845," and plenty of its trees have stood through a lot of weather. Our goal is to keep the good ones standing and take down the ones that are no longer safe.

Call (469) 750-3092 to set up a visit, or send photos with the form. Get a free estimate