Some neighbors woke up to a surprise in Chicago's Avondale neighborhood Wednesday, as a dead tree fell on two vehicles and left the street blocked.

By 4 p.m., the large dead tree that fell at School Street and Avers Avenue had been removed. But a damaged car, a BMW, remained at the scene with a caved-in back roof and a busted-out back window.

Surveillance video captured the massive tree falling onto the two cars as they were parked across the street from each other, and a car alarm sounding afterward. Avondale residents took to social media and said there were strong winds blowing when the tree fell.

In fact, CBS News Chicago Meteorologist David Yeomans said gusts hit 45 miles an hour in that area Wednesday morning.

The neighbors also said the tree that fell had been dead for a long time.

Tuti Robertson came in from out of town to visit her son for Thanksgiving. She said she was sitting in the front room of a house on the block with her husband when the tree fell.

"When like the garbage trucks come and pick up the trash, that's what it sounded like, like it was scraping, like, I thought oh, this is kind of weird that the garbage trucks are here picking up, obviously," Robertson said. "It just sounded like something was being scraped along."

The Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation said its crews had previously acknowledged the tree was dead, inspected it, and deemed it necessary to have removed.

This followed 311 calls in May, June, and July. In fact, the city's 311 system said it was marked for removal on Oct. 25. But as to when the tree had been scheduled to be removed before it fell, the answer was "weather permitting."

The BMW's owner, Sergey Zelenev, said he's had the car for 17 years, and thought it would last for a long time. He was at home when the tree totaled his car.

"I work remotely, so I got the message from my neighbors that the tree fell on my car. So I looked at the pictures. I instantly realize that it was totaled. I got out. I had a dentist appointment, so I had to run to that, but I got out, saw the tree," he said.

The city said the owners of the two damaged cars will have to file a damage and property claim with the city. Zelenev said he's already been in contact with his insurance agency.

Meanwhile Wednesday, a huge tree also fell on a car amid high winds Wednesday near Wolcott and Summerdale avenues in the North Side's Bowmanville neighborhood, just south of Rosehill Cemetery.

The house right next to the car also sustained gutter and siding damage, and a car nearby took a hit from flying debris.