Bellevue family escapes unharmed as tree splits home during storm

BELLEVUE, Wash. — “It’s a miracle that we didn’t get hit.”

Olga Romanivko says that a miracle happened during last week’s big storm.

Romanivko and her three children, ages 8, 11 and 13, were inside their rented house in Bellevue when winds started to pick up.

“Branches start hitting the windows. I told the kids let’s get everything together flashlights, candles,” said Romanivko.

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Then moments later, a falling tree took out powerlines as it came down on top of their home, splitting it open.

“I’m not sure how we survived because it hit right above us,” she said.

Romanivko says she climbed out of the debris, frantically looking for her kids.

“Tanya was screaming so I told her don’t panic, we need to get out of the house. I couldn’t find my son, so I’m like, ‘Where are you, where are you?’ – no answer. I thought he was killed. He had to go out through the window barefoot, get some help – so neighbors came right away to get us out of the house,” said Romanivko.

The single mother and nurse also feel they had protection from a prompting just before the tree fell.

“Right before that happened, I had this feeling – it’s kind of getting unsafe, so let’s pray. We got together, we prayed and I believe God protected us because the tree was huge and it fell right on the line where me, my daughter and my son was. Thank God we’re alive,” she said.

They got away with scratches and the clothes they were wearing, but not much more.

They can’t go back into the house since the tree is still there.

The family is now staying with a neighbor as they look for a new place to live.

Friends set up a GoFundMe to help the family recover.

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