History Struck by Lightning in DPR Park

On Thursday, August 1, a lightning storm came through Durham and struck the tree next to the McCown-Mangum House at West Point on the Eno causing some large branches to be weakened and fall to the ground. The strike was so powerful that some of the smoke detectors in the house went off. Fortunately there was no damage to the house, but that was not the case for the tree. And why is this tree so important? This 150-180 year old White Oak is not only historically important for its age, but is also a key part of the landscape around the McCown-Mangum House. Hugh Mangum captured this tree in several photographs of the house and the family. Which is why Durham Parks and Recreation is putting in the effort to save the tree!

Initial Evaluation

During an initial evaluation from The City of Durham's Urban Forestry department on Friday, August 2, it was determined that the tree would be expected to survive, but no one will officially know until an aerial inspection is completed. Even then, it may take years to actually know how the tree was impacted by the strike.

Unless the aerial inspection revealed more damage than can be seen from the ground, UF’s goal would be to remove the part of the tree that sustained damage during the lightning strike. They believe the lightning jumped from the tree to the house since there was no clear path of scorched bark down to the ground. The proposed work to be completed by UF would leave the tree lopsided, but it would hopefully survive for many years to come.

Final Evaluation

Urban Forestry was correct in their original ground assessment; one of the codominant trunks was damaged by lightning, but everything else appeared to be okay due to the possibility that the lightning jumped to the House.

Seen in the 'After' photograph, only damaged portions of the tree (one of the codominant trunks) were removed. The tree will be monitored for any further decline such as leaves dropping out of season, limbs suddenly falling, and not budding out in the spring. It will be several years before we are really sure, and it will be about 50 years before the tree begins to look balanced. 

Before                                                                 After

Next time you're visiting West Point on the Eno, check out the tree and the impact it had on the view of the house. You might even see a new piece of art created out of the tree limb lying on the ground in the 'After' picture.