Family 'inches from death' after tree fell on home

A family remains in temporary accommodation after being "inches from death" as Storm Goretti swept a tree across their house.

Emily Hotchkiss and her two young children were in their Cornwall Housing home in Falmouth when the tree fell on 8 January and she "broke down and was shaking" when she returned to the site a week later.

"You look at that house, you look at the size of the tree and your mind can't kind of help go to the 'what ifs'," she said.

"A three-year-old and a six-year-old and myself were inches from death."

Most of the tree has been removed but damage to the property has meant the family have had to be housed in holiday accommodation until they can move elsewhere in March.

Hotchkiss said they were uninsured as the household budget had been too tight and they had now lost most of their possessions.

She said she had previously raised concerns about the tree with the council.

Cornwall Council said this particular tree had been inspected last year and had been assessed as being in a safe condition.

A spokesperson said the particularly strong winds appear to have caused it to fall despite no prior indication of an imminent risk.

Hotchkiss questioned the national response to the damage sustained across Cornwall.

"Cornwall's been forgotten," she said.

"Why wasn't a national emergency declared down here when you've seen the extent of the damage across the county?

"Cornwall's been, as per, neglected, I feel."

A No 10 spokesperson said the government understood "the difficulties faced by communities in Cornwall" and it was "continuing to work round the clock with local authorities, network engineers and emergency responders" to resolve them.

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