SUQUAMISH — Suquamish residents are not unaccustomed to big booms this time of year but when neighbors on Fir Street heard an enormous blast Monday morning, they quickly realized that it was something other than a late fireworks display.

Shortly before 7 a.m. a huge, ivy-wrapped maple tree met its end in spectacular fashion, knocking out a transformer and blocking the entire road for nearly six hours. That was six hours too long, according to residents, who spent the better part of their unexpected isolation attempting to contact the proper authorities.

“We tried the fire department, called 911. We called the power company and the phone company,” explained Andi Seets, noting that although the power company repaired downed wires — they also only cut a small pathway in through the branches. As a result, she missed her doctor’s appointment.

Seets was not alone.

Other residents on the deadend road missed work and similar engagements due to the unexpected roadblock.

“We have no access,” she reported shortly after 11 a.m. “The tree still sitting there. You can’t get in and we can’t get out.”

Kristi Joncas said she initially thought a firecracker exploded but when the transformer blew, the entire neighborhood knew something was up.

“It’s rotten, very rotten,” she said, assessing the huge wreckage of trunk and branches. “We’re all missing appointments and some of us are missing work.”

In total, seven homes were blocked until crews from the Kitsap County Public Works Department set to work and had the site cleared by 1 p.m.

“I think it’s wrong,” Seets said. “If I had a heart attack at this moment right now they’d have no way to get the ambulance through.”

Access aside, the residents seemed more perturbed by the fact that they didn’t know which agency to contact to have the obstruction removed.

Once it was, Seets remarked, “We really want this to help other people with their access (in similar instances). We have a lot of these people out here who need immediate assistance.”