Tree Removal
Dead, leaning or too-big trees brought down piece by piece and hauled away.
24/7 storm & emergency
Emergency Tree Service in Decatur, IL
Decatur Elite Tree Service answers emergency tree service calls in Decatur, IL 24 hours a day. When a storm drops a tree on the house, the garage, a car or across the driveway, we get the weight off, tarp what's open, and clean the rest up once it's safe.
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What to Do Right Now
Get everyone out of the rooms under the tree and stay clear of any wire that's down. Treat every downed line as live. Call Ameren Illinois to report the line, then call us. Please don't try to saw a tree off the roof yourself. Branches under load spring back hard, and we've seen people hurt that way after nearly every big storm.
Decatur Elite Tree Service also provides storm damage tree removal and fallen tree removal to Decatur and nearby Illinois towns, including Long Creek, Mount Zion, Harristown and Clinton. Take a few photos from a safe spot for your insurer before anything gets moved.
Contact UsStorm Calls We Handle
We work storm calls by danger, not by who called first. A tree on a bedroom roof beats a limb on the lawn.
Tree on the House
The weight comes off the roof one piece at a time, and the hole gets tarped that night.
Tree on a Car or Garage
Sawed off in the right order so nothing slides and dents it worse.
Blocked Driveways and Streets
First we clear enough trunk to get your car out. The rest of the cleanup follows.
Hangers and Split Trees
Broken limbs hung up in the crown and cracked trunks come down before gravity gets to them.
Emergency Tree Removal Costs
- Limb off a roof, no hole: $350 to $900
- Whole tree on a house or garage: $1,500 to $4,500
- Tarping a roof opening: $150 to $400
- Tree across a driveway: $400 to $1,200
- Night and weekend calls: same rates, no surcharge
If a tree hits a covered building, insurance often pays a good part of it.
What Every Storm Call Includes
- Photos before we cut, for your insurance claim
- The weight lifted off your roof before anything else
- A tarp on any hole in the roof
- Downed wires left for Ameren, we never touch them
- A line-by-line invoice your adjuster can follow
- The full cleanup once it's safe
How Much Does Emergency Tree Removal Cost in Decatur?
Emergency tree removal in Decatur usually costs $350 to $900 for a limb on a roof and $1,500 to $4,500 for a whole tree on a house. A crane can add to that when nothing else can lift the weight safely. Nights and weekends cost the same, and the written price comes before cleanup.
| Storm job | Typical price | Usually covered by insurance? |
|---|---|---|
| Tree on the roof of the house | $1,500 to $4,500 | Often, up to the policy's tree limit |
| Limb through a garage or shed | $500 to $1,800 | Often |
| Tree across the driveway, nothing hit | $400 to $1,200 | Usually not |
| Tree down in the open yard | $400 to $1,500 | Usually not |
| Roof tarp | $150 to $400 | Often, as part of the claim |
Does Homeowners Insurance Cover Tree Removal?
Usually, when the tree lands on a covered building like the house, the garage or a fence. Many policies cap the removal part at $500 to $1,000 per tree, with the building repair paid on top. If it falls in the yard and hits nothing, homeowners insurance usually won't pay, though a few cover a blocked driveway.
Read your policy or call your agent before you assume either way. Every claim goes easier with photos taken before anything moves, the date and time of the storm, and an itemized invoice that splits removal from cleanup. We send all three. After the May 2025 storm we wrote up 37 of those in one week.
Storms in Decatur and Why Trees Fail
Central Illinois gets straight-line winds of 60 to 80 mph from summer thunderstorms most years, and those knock down far more trees here than tornadoes do. On May 16, 2025, a windstorm dropped a large tree across the 600 block of West Main Street and left more than 4,000 Ameren customers in Macon County without power.
The trees that fail first were already weak: dead ash left over from the emerald ash borer, silver maples with split forks, trunks rotting at the base, and trees whose roots got chopped for a sidewalk or a drive. We walk about 200 yards a year before storm season, free, and a lot of those visits head off a midnight call.
After the Storm: Cleanup
When the danger's handled, we circle back for everything else. Brush goes through the chipper, logs get hauled or stacked as firewood, and we climb up to pull the hangers out of trees that stayed standing. Got a tree that took a hit but didn't fall? We'll tell you straight whether a trim saves it or it's the next one down.
Storm Claim? We Document It
Photos before we cut, a written description of what fell and what it hit, and an itemized invoice your insurer can read.
Contact UsWinter Trimming List
Get on our December to February list. Dormant trees, frozen ground and 10% off trims over $400.
Contact UsQuestions we hear
Emergency Tree Service FAQs
How fast can you get here after a storm?
We pick up 24 hours a day. When a tree is on the house, a car or the drive, we usually have a crew there the same day, often inside a few hours. After a storm that hits the whole county, we sort calls by danger, and everybody gets a real arrival time, not a guess.
Should I call my insurance company first?
If the tree is on the house and more rain is coming, call us first so we can lift the weight and get a tarp on. Then call your insurance company. Most policies expect you to stop the damage from getting worse, and our photos and itemized bill make the claim go smoother.
Who removes a tree that fell on a power line?
That's Ameren Illinois' job. Report the downed line and keep at least 10 feet away, kids and pets too. As soon as Ameren has cleared the line or cut the power to it, we take the rest of the tree off your house and out of the yard.
Do you charge more at night?
No. Nights, weekends and holidays cost the same as a Tuesday afternoon. A tree on the roof at midnight is bad enough without a surcharge stacked on top. We set the written price before the cleanup work begins, and it doesn't change because of the hour.
Our Other Tree Services
Tree Trimming
Deadwood out, limbs off the roof, crowns thinned for the next storm.
Stump Grinding
Stumps chewed out below the grass line, ready for seed.
Crane Tree Removal
Giant trees over houses lifted out one piece at a time.
Land Clearing
Brushy lots, fence lines and building sites cleared and hauled.
Commercial Tree Service
Trims, removals and storm work for businesses, HOAs and landlords.
Free walk-around
Got a Tree That's Bothering You?
Leave your name, number and a line about the tree. We call back to set up a walk-around, and the written price follows within 48 hours.
- Written price within 48 hours
- 24/7 storm and emergency calls
- Clean-up included in every price