With power restored, Roanoke Rapids is cleaning up from Irene

In the Greenbriar Terrace neighborhood of Roanoke Rapids, Bob and Thelma Deloatch said Sunday that the towering trees at the house they've lived in for one month were a major selling point. Last Saturday, those trees came crashing down, punching a hole through the couple's bedroom.

"I guess this is my housewarming gift," joked Thelma Deloatch.

"She was in back of the house, in the den. I was standing in the front door, and when it came down, we met each other," Bob Deloatch said.

Nearby, Irene's powerful wind gusts sent another oak tree smashing into Barbara Bolton's bedroom.

"They have to gut the whole bedroom and start over again because ceiling, floors, everything is gone," Bolton said.

Eight days later, Bolton said she's battling smelly mold and mildew in the upstairs rooms. The damage has put a damper on her plan to sell the house. She had just put it on the market when Irene hit.

Insurance is covering the repairs, Bolton said, allowing her to give the house a makeover.

"That's one good thing about it – that it's going to sell really fast, we hope," she said.