Lizzy Burke shares the moment a tree fell on her home in Elanora during ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred

Council admit being aware of a dangerous tree before it fell and destroyed a home during ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred - but have said there was little they could do at the time given conditions.

Council admits it was aware of potential danger from a tree “as tall as a power pole” prior to it falling on a home in ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred - but it was too dangerous to address.

On Friday, Elanora resident Lizzy Burke, 33 had the fright of her life when the giant tree collapsed onto her home as storms battered the region.

Ms Burke, who has had to find refuge since the incident, said the tree fell onto the garage and smashed the roof of two of the bedrooms.

“It damaged a lot of belongings as most of my stuff was in the garage in boxes including a new bed frame, my three surf boards and more,” she said.

Lizzy Burke said the tree, which fell on her Elanora home, were as tall as the power poles. Photo: Lizzy Burke

Lizzy Burke lives in Elanora with her sister. Photo: Supplied

Hours before the tree fell, Ms Burke said she was notified by a passing paramedic - on the way to work - that a water main had burst underneath the tree.

“We were all really worried about the tree falling once we heard the cyclone was confirmed,” she said. “There was water pouring out as well as soil and sand and that made us even more concerned.”

Ms Burke said she called council and “they said they couldn’t fix the water main as it was too dangerous with the wind”.

“When I expressed concern, I was told ‘it will only be an issue if it falls’, which was quite disappointing.”

Lizzy Burke said the tree which fell on her Elanora home destroyed the garage and two bedrooms. Photo: Lizzy Burke

Lizzy Burke said the damage caused was so severe that their lease will be terminated and they have had to relocate. Photo: Lizzy Burke

A Gold Coast City Council spokesperson confirmed it was made aware of the burst water main on Friday morning.

“Crews responded at 2pm the same day to turn the water main off and inspect the tree, however no action could be taken with the tree due to the impending cyclone,” the spokesperson said.

“It would not have been safe for crews to be working at height to carry out works on the tree at this time as the city was already experiencing high winds and heavy rainfall with warnings and alerts in place.

“Crews responded to the fallen tree as soon as it was safe to do so and removed the tree from the property.

“City crews were on the ground as soon as possible following the impact of the cyclone to repair the significant damage experienced across the Gold Coast with work expected to continue for weeks to come.”

Ms Burke said their lease will be terminated as the home will be deemed "unliveable".

“We don’t have long term accommodation. (But) one of my friends is putting my sister and me up for the moment while we figure that out.

“We’ve had to rent a storage shed for our things for the time being.”

Lizzy Burke said the damage caused was so severe that their lease will be terminated and they have had to relocate. Photo: Lizzy Burke

Lizzy Burke said the damage caused was so severe that their lease will be terminated and they have had to relocate. Photo: Lizzy Burke

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Originally published as Lizzy Burke shares the moment a tree fell on her home in Elanora during ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred