Thunder strikes served as quite the wake up call for folks in Ahwatukee early Friday morning. For the three houses in the Lakewood Development that had palm tree fires, it was even more alarming.
"My kids were screaming because of the second boom," said Diane D'Antuono. "Next thing I know all hell breaks loose."
Her palm tree ablaze in her front yard, Phoenix Fire dispatch informed D'Antuono to use her hose and shoot them towards the tree until firefighters arrived.
"I was nervous it was going to get on the roof," she said. "but they got here pretty fast."
A few blocks south of D'Antuono, Taylor Gilliam was asleep in her bed.
"Apparently there was a big boom," Gilliam said, "but I didn't hear it."
Gilliam's mother woke her.
"She looked out my window and it was red and smoke. She screamed, 'FIRE!'" Gilliam said.
Gilliam's family used a hose as well until firefighters could get to them. The tree burnt so bad it was not able to be salvaged.
"The firefighters said it was burning from the inside and they said it's basically going to shrivel up and die," she said. "So we're going to have to have people come and cut it down.
About a mile away from Gilliam, near 43rd Way and Woodland Rd in Ahwatukee, another palm tree caught on fire. Luckily, none of the three fires spread to the houses and firefighters were able to extinguish all of the embers.
