A large Silver Maple tree fell across South Burrowes Street last night, crushing one vehicle and closing the street for several hours.

Miranda Corl said she was sitting in her car at the corner of College Avenue and Burrowes Street when, without warning, the tree came crashing down. The impact crushed the rear portion of her 2002 Isuzu Rodeo, lifting the front wheels off the road.

Every part of the car's roof was caved in except the section over the driver's seat, Corl said.

She tried to get out, but all the doors were jammed shut, she said

Within 30 seconds, Brian Falce (senior-civil engineering), a bouncer at Sports Café and Grille, 244 W. College Ave., came sprinting over, yanked her door open, and helped her from the remains of the vehicle.

The accident is going to be considered an "act of God" on the police report, Corl said. Although not concerned about a finding a new vehicle, she is unsure if her insurance company will cover the accident.

"My heart was just pounding," she said. "I'm just lucky I didn't get hurt."

Mark Bost (senior-management and international business), said he was walking by when the tree came down.

There was a loud crash, he said, like an explosion.

"I thought someone had rammed into the back of [the tree]," he said

Crowds of curious onlookers began to gather and inspect the scene. One was Penn State professor of ornamental horticulture Larry Kuhns.

A fungus had weakened the inside of the tree, Kuhns said, as some of his students pulled spongy tissue samples from the inside of the tree trunk. "We just talked about this in class on Monday," he added.

The only way to determine if a tree is infected is to find mushrooms sprouting on the bark, he said.

He pointed to the exposed insides of the uprooted tree, part of which was hollowed out.

"It's decayed wood, totally infested with the fungus," he said. "There was probably a wound in the tree where the disease got started."

Kuhns said it was unlikely that other trees in the area could come crashing down. The only other case like this he has seen was when an oak tree came down after a particularly heavy snowfall.

He said the trees in State College are inspected regularly and it is rare for one to fall like this.

"This is just an aberration," he said.

Meanwhile, Corl stood in the middle of South Burrowes Street looking at her crushed car.

"I'm not paying those parking tickets I got today," she said.