PICTURED: Charlton mum living in 'bombsite' after 60 foot tree crashes on house

Rachael Collins was watching TV when she heard a "clap" like thunder and the house "shaking" as a giant Poplar tree fell during the devastating Valentine’s Day storms.

The 45-year-old, whose bedroom ceiling collapsed, is still living in cold, damp conditions and says she is frustrated at repair delays from Hexagon Housing Association.

The mother-of-two, who lives in Lime Kiln Drive, says there is added "stress" because no one will clear the wreckage of the massive tree.

Describing the moment the tree hit the house, Ms Collins said: "We were just sitting, watching TV, and there was a big sort of clap, we thought it was maybe thunder, we felt the house shaking. It was really scary."

She claims she called the housing association and was told to call back later during which her bedroom ceiling collapsed from the water and rubble.

The Sainsbury's worker said: "My bedroom looks like a bombsite at the moment.

"It is freezing cold.

"They just don’t seem to realise how serious the situation is. It is really stressful. We are not sleeping very well."

She says while the roof was open to the elements she was forced to sleep on the sofa and the damp is affecting her daughter’s asthma.

Hexagon has carried out some temporary repairs but Ms Collins is stuck with damage while arguments rumble on over who owns the tree.

She added: "No one will remove the tree. It is really frustrating."

A Hexagon Housing Association spokeswoman said: "

"As the tree is on property owned by the Local Authority, we informed them that one of their trees had fallen into two of our properties causing damage and needed to be removed before we could carry out repairs.

"In an effort to carry out these repairs quickly, Hexagon have since been able to remove some boughs of the fallen tree to gain access to the roof of these properties and have carried out some temporary repairs whilst we facilitate a more permanent solution."