A POOLE family had a lucky escape after a tree crashed onto their home as they slept.

A large section of a beech tree fell onto the detached house in Parkstone Heights, Parkstone, at 3.45am on Saturday, piercing the walls and roof in several places.

But all three people living in the house slept through the drama and only realised what had happened when they were woken by police officers at 6.38am.

The police had been called by a motorist, who discovered the fallen branch and was concerned that someone might be injured.

One of the occupants, who does not wish to be named, said: “My son heard something but thought it was something out-side. We only discovered what happened when the police came into the house and woke us.”

They were met with a broken window, shards of glass everywhere and the sight of branches poking through their ceilings.

But they know the incident could have been far worse had they not had a fire escape at the side of the house, which took the brunt of the fall.

“The fire escape saved us,” she said. “I don’t like thinking about what-ifs but we realised straight away how lucky we were not to be injured.

“I’m shell-shocked, absolutely shell-shocked.”

Just a fortnight ago, the Borough of Poole had granted permission to fell the tree, which is on land owned by a management company.

Their report stated it was “in an exposed location and in an unreasonably hazardous condition”.

The homeowner wrote to Poole council in May stating: “I am very relieved that at long last these trees are to be felled. They are black and rotten inside, and in my opinion are dangerous, especially the one that is overhanging my house.”