Trinity Bellwoods tree at centre of fatal accident flagged as hazard two years ago, documents show

The Siberian elm was at risk for disease or decay if left untreated, according to an audit of trees done after the 2013 ice storm.

TheStar.com
Aug. 11, 2016
By May Warren

The tree at the centre of a fatal accident in Trinity Bellwoods Park was flagged as a potential hazard almost two years ago, documents obtained by Metro show.

The Siberian elm was at risk for disease or decay if left untreated, according to an audit of trees done after the 2013 ice storm. On June 17 of this year, a bough snapped, falling about 12 metres and hitting a man who had been lying on the grass with his wife.

However, there’s no evidence the issue identified with the Siberian elm caused the bough to fall, Matthew Cutler, the city’s Parks, Forestry and Recreation department spokesman, said in an email.

An inspection after the accident “didn’t find any rot or any disease,” and city staff has been “systematically” inspecting all trees at Trinity Bellwoods since, he said.

The same report found 97 other trees in the park had “more serious defects,” including cracked limbs and dead wood, that needed to be addressed as soon as possible.

Most were treated through the city’s emerald ash borer program, Cutler said.

Local arborist Todd Irvine gave the city’s tree program good marks, but said it’s clear more needs to be done.

“It’s only when something falls and hurts someone, in this case at Trinity Bellwoods, that we stand up and go, ‘Oh jeez, we should be caring for these things,’ ” he said. “We can no longer have trees be an afterthought or as the last thing that we consider.”

Cutler said the city is already making plans for change. Trees are now pruned at least once every 15 years; the goal was to increase the frequency to every seven years by 2016 — a target that’s been pushed back to 2023 because of budget pressures, the 2013 ice storm and the ash borer.

Janet McKay, executive director of Local Enhancement & Appreciation of Forests (LEAF), a non-profit agency devoted to protecting the urban forest, said the city will need to dedicate additional resources to tree care as climate change leads to more frequent storms and droughts.