Fayetteville, N.C. — A Fayetteville man was hurt Wednesday night after a tree crashed down onto the roof of his home.

Reggie Davis was reading the bible in the bedroom of his home on Longhorn Drive when strong winds split a loblolly pine that toppled onto the roof.

"Everything came out of the ceiling. I was buried," Davis said Thursday. "I just had to dig myself out like I was in a swimming pool."

Davis's fiancée, Shirley Campbell, had just come home with her 4-year-old granddaughter.

"It was horrible," she said. "I was standing outside watching a tree fall on my house."

Davis's injuries weren't serious. He suffered some bruises to his back and one of his legs.

The tree was struck by lightning last year and was dying, and the landlord of the home had been planning to remove it this summer.

Tree removal experts were at the home Thursday to clear away the debris.

The American Red Cross is assisting Campbell, Davis and others at the home with a place to stay.

Campbell said it could have been worse.

"I just thank God that we're OK," she said. "We can replace the house, but we can't replace each other."