A branch off a city-maintained tree smashed my truck as I drove, could have killed me

A branch fell off of a city-maintained tree and onto my truck as I drove. The branch fell about 40 feet, was about 30 feet long and totaled my truck by smashing my windshield, bending the truck's frame and embedding into the passenger side of the engine; if it had hit 16 inches to the left, it would have flattened the cabin with me in it. I am now having terrible nightmares, I am always on edge, I jump at loud noises, I have a constant feeling of dread and I cannot stop thinking of the windshield shattering into my face. I have car insurance that is going after the City of Sacramento because the tree limb was rotted out, but can I also make a claim myself for the mental and financial stress this is causing me? The neighbors of the area the accident occurred said that a branch came down last winter off the same sick tree, but that nothing was done to prune the tree to avoid future accidents. Seeing as how the City's negligence almost took my life, can I be compensated by the City for property damage & mental anguish?

DETAILS:
Immediately after my truck was smashed I was hysterical, I thought I was going to die and started shrieking. I realized that I was alive and needed to get out of the truck and couldn’t stop crying for more than an hour after the accident. I was so shook up it scared me at how upset I was, I was unable to control myself. I try to not think about how close I came to dying because I start sobbing again.

It took the city 3 days to clear the limb, they never told me when it would happen so I had to keep driving by to see the accident to check if it was removed. The sick tree has other weak looking branches that could fall and I kept thinking another limb would fall. I was in a constant state of adrenalin overload for 3 days and couldn’t even think strait.

The truck belonged to my deceased father and is the only thing I have of his that was substantial. He had no other property of significance and it saddens me greatly to know that now it is gone too, through no fault of my own.

I can’t stop seeing the windshield explode in my face and the deafening crash of that 30-foot limb that nearly fell on my head. I feel a sense of dread now like something else bad is going to happen to me, I haven’t really been out of the house for 4 days and have missed 2 days of work dealing with this mess.

I am now sleeping during the day to try to stave off the exhaustion from lack of sleep I get at night. THANK GOODNESS there are not any tree limbs over our bedroom, or I would get no sleep at all. I have nightmares when I do sleep that have been brought on by this accident.

I am getting married in June and have a lot of stuff to plan, but I have been too overwhelmed by the trauma and details of this accident to focus. It makes me sad that I don’t feel like planning our wedding, but I just want to stay in our bedroom and nap all day. I haven’t even been able to cook dinner or do chores because of my mental state, I just feel fried and totally drained.

The stress of now having to find another vehicle is intense, we cannot afford to rent a car for an extended period and so I am franticly looking for one we can purchase. I hate being rushed into such an important decision, it worries me greatly that we may end up with a lemon and then have the stress of that. My truck was wonderful and had no engine problems at all, it ran smoothly and dependably -- I have no guarantees of that in a different vehicle.

I had an interview that Friday for a job that pays more than my current position that I had to cancel. If they cannot re-schedule the interview and/or do not hire me, I will think it is because of the accident – I will miss out on greater wages due to this accident. Who knows how much that loss would accumulate to over years? It upsets me that I had to cancel, I will have less confidence in my interview if they can reschedule.

I don’t know what to do. The City Clerk's office said I should open a claim, but I don't know how much to ask for.

Any advice is welcome.

You need to have the insurer pursue more if that is possibly going to happen. You should not and normally cannot handle it as two actions.