The first hour
- Get people clear. Move everyone out of rooms under the tree or limb. A trunk resting on a roof can shift as rain soaks in or wind picks up again.
- Treat every wire as live. First Electric Cooperative, citing Arkansas law, says to keep people and equipment at least 10 feet from energized overhead lines (checked Nov 10, 2026). A line tangled in branches may be hidden.
- Call the utility. The numbers are below. Don't report a downed line by email or social media; Conway Corporation asks customers not to.
- Call 911 if someone is hurt or a tree on a road is an immediate danger.
- Photograph everything before anything is moved: the tree, the roof, the inside of the house, fences, cars.
- Call your insurer, then line up the tree work.
Falling trees kill people in Arkansas. On June 25, 2023, NWS Storm Data recorded that in Carlisle, in Lonoke County next door to Faulkner, "a large tree fell on a house, causing two direct fatalities and one injury."
Downed lines: who to call
Check your bill if you aren't sure who serves the house. PowerOutage.us tracks four providers in Faulkner County: Entergy Arkansas, Conway Corporation, Petit Jean Electric Cooperative and First Electric Cooperative (checked Nov 10, 2026).
| Utility | Outage line | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Conway Corporation | 501-450-6000 | After hours, follow the prompts; for a safety emergency a live representative is reachable 24 hours a day. Outage map at outage.conwaycorp.com (checked Nov 10, 2026) |
| Entergy Arkansas | 800-968-8243 | Also written 800-9OUTAGE; answered 24/7 (checked Nov 10, 2026) |
| First Electric Cooperative | 888-827-3322 | Serves a small part of the county (checked Nov 10, 2026) |
| Petit Jean Electric Cooperative | See your bill | Its 2018 line-clearing schedule listed work around Guy, Damascus and Twin Groves |
Utilities clear lines; they don't clean up your yard. Entergy's tree trimming page says it does not remove storm debris (checked Nov 10, 2026). Conway Corporation says trees and animals touching its equipment cause more than half of its outages (checked Nov 10, 2026), and Entergy said in 2017 that "trees and branches are the biggest threat to the electricity grid during storms."
A tree across the road
- A city street in Conway. Conway's tree ordinance lets the city remove or prune severely damaged trees after storms in street and alley rights-of-way. Call City Hall at 501-450-6100 during business hours (checked Nov 10, 2026).
- A county road. The Faulkner County Road Department, 501-450-4930, is open Monday through Thursday, 6 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (checked Nov 10, 2026). Private roads are the responsibility of the owners along them.
- A state highway. ArDOT's Faulkner County maintenance office is on Highway 64 East, (501) 329-2577 (checked Nov 10, 2026). If a tree blocking a highway is an immediate danger, call 911.
Your homeowner claim
Insurance rules come from your own policy, so read it and call your agent. The general picture, from published consumer guidance:
- A tree on the house. The Insurance Information Institute said in a July 2010 release that when a tree hits the house or another insured structure, such as a detached garage, standard homeowner policies cover the structure and its contents, including trees felled by wind or hail, whoever owned the tree.
- Removing the tree. The same July 2010 release put debris removal coverage at generally about $500 to $1,000, depending on the insurer and the policy.
- A tree that hit nothing. If no insured structure was damaged, there's generally no coverage for removal, though the III notes some insurers pay to clear a tree blocking a driveway or a wheelchair ramp.
- The neighbor's tree. Your insurer may seek repayment from the neighbor's insurer, especially if the tree was in poor health or not maintained, according to the III.
- Cars. Covered under optional comprehensive auto coverage, not the homeowner policy.
Photograph all the damage before debris is removed. The Arkansas Attorney General's office warns not to let a contractor discourage you from contacting your insurance company, and to review every document you send to your insurer. The Arkansas Insurance Department's Consumer Services line is 501-371-2640 (TTY 800-852-5494; checked Nov 10, 2026). The department's disaster page also suggests keeping a household inventory before a disaster.
Price gouging and storm sales
The Attorney General's office puts out storm-scam alerts after big storms, and Arkansas law protects homeowners in two ways.
Price gouging. Under Act 376 of 1997, once a federal, state or local state of emergency is declared, businesses may not charge more than 10 percent above the price before the disaster. The Attorney General's office says the limit lasts at least 30 days, a local governing body can extend it another 30, and for home repairs it lasts 180 days. Violations carry civil penalties of up to $10,000 each (checked Nov 10, 2026).
The three-day rule. "Consumers in Arkansas have the right to cancel any home solicitation sale within three days of making a purchase," the Attorney General's office said in March 2025. Ark. Code § 4-89-107 (2024 code text) runs the deadline to midnight of the third calendar day, not counting Sundays and holidays. The law covers sales over $25 made after a seller comes to your home, but not a visit you asked for, so it protects you from a door knocker, not from a company you called yourself.
The Attorney General also advises: don't be pressured into hiring anyone, don't sign a contract with blank spaces to be filled in later, and don't pay in full until the work is done. The office can be reached at (800) 482-8982 (checked Nov 10, 2026). More in the hiring guide.
Storms that brought trees down here
| Date | What the record says |
|---|---|
| Dec 12–13 and 25–28, 2000 | Twin ice storms; ice "stressed trees and tree limbs to the point where they fell on houses"; more than 500,000 customers out (NWS Little Rock) |
| Apr 27, 2014 | EF4 tornado, Mayflower to Vilonia; 12 deaths in Faulkner County, 16 in all (NWS Little Rock) |
| June 6, 2014 | "Numerous trees were blown down in Conway and around Faulkner County" (NWS Storm Data) |
| Jan 21, 2018 | EF1 tornado near Needs Creek Drive, south of Greenbrier: roofs torn off, trees toppled, no injuries (KATV news report, Jan. 22, 2018) |
| Mar 31, 2023 | Little Rock EF3 next door in Pulaski County: at least 10,000 trees lost at Burns Park (NWS Little Rock) |
| June 25, 2023 | Numerous trees down across Conway; 13,413 Faulkner County customers without power (NWS Storm Data; Arkansas Democrat-Gazette) |
Trees left standing after the storm
A tree that rode out the storm can still be hurt. Look for limbs hanging broken in the crown, split trunks, a new lean, and soil lifted or cracked at the base on one side. Pines need a second look in the weeks after: the University of Arkansas says Ips bark beetles "most often attack injured, dying or recently felled trees or logging debris," and its pine bark beetle fact sheet notes that southern pine beetle attacks often start on lightning-damaged trees. See dead or leaning trees for the warning signs.
What emergency work costs
Storm work is slower and riskier than a planned removal. Thumbtack's 2026 trimming guide says emergency fees are "sometimes as high as $250 an hour" (checked Nov 10, 2026), and its removal guide puts an ordinary single-tree removal at $450 to $1,450 on average (checked Nov 10, 2026). A trunk resting on a roof usually needs a crane or careful rigging. Keep every receipt for your claim, and remember the 10 percent price gouging limit once an emergency is declared. More on what tree work costs.
Storm questions
Should I get the tree off the roof before the adjuster comes?
Photograph everything first, then ask your insurer what it wants done before the adjuster's visit. The photos are the record of what the storm did.
Will Entergy or Conway Corporation remove the tree from my yard?
They clear their lines. Entergy says it does not remove storm debris (checked Nov 10, 2026). The tree in your yard is yours to deal with.
A crew knocked on my door and I signed. Can I cancel?
Under Arkansas's home solicitation law, generally yes, until midnight of the third day, not counting Sundays and holidays. Call the Attorney General's office at (800) 482-8982 (checked Nov 10, 2026) if a company refuses.
Can I burn the storm debris?
Not during a county burn ban. Faulkner County's most recent ban was lifted at 9 a.m. on November 3, 2026 (checked Nov 10, 2026). Check the rules page before lighting anything.
A storm request sent from this site goes to one independent contractor who works in Faulkner County. The site has no crews and can't send anyone itself.
Sources
- NWS Little Rock: Storm Data, June 2023; Storm Data, June 2014; April 27, 2014 tornado; December 2000 ice storms; March 31, 2023 tornado.
- KATV, EF-1 tornado damage confirmed in Faulkner County, Jan. 22, 2018. Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, June 25, 2023.
- Conway Corporation, outages; Entergy, contact phone numbers and tree trimming; First Electric Cooperative, service area and working near power lines; PowerOutage.us, Faulkner County. Checked Nov 10, 2026. Entergy, June 22, 2017 release. Petit Jean Electric, service area (April 5, 2018).
- City of Conway, Ordinance O-11-51 and Planning; Faulkner County, Road Department and burn ban notice; ArDOT, District 8. Checked Nov 10, 2026.
- Insurance Information Institute, insurance for fallen trees, July 22, 2010. Arkansas Insurance Department, Disaster Resources and Contact (checked Nov 10, 2026).
- Arkansas Attorney General, Price Gouging (checked Nov 10, 2026); home solicitation alert, March 6, 2025; post-storm scammers alert, April 1, 2023. Ark. Code § 4-89-107 and § 4-89-102.
- U of A Division of Agriculture, Common Insect Problems and FSA5034, Pine Bark Beetles in Arkansas.
- Thumbtack, 2026 Tree Trimming Cost Guide and Tree Removal Cost Guide 2026. Checked Nov 10, 2026.