A section of St. Patrick Street East was closed off on Jan. 9 when heavy equipment was brought in to remove a tree felled in the Dec. 22 ice storm.
Grand River Landscaping and Tree Removal brought in a small work crew, a chipper and an overhead crane to remove the tree that had fallen on a home at 392 St. Patrick from the neighbouring property.
Home owner Patrick Donoqhue watched as parts of the tree were removed from the top of his home by the crane, chipped and removed.
“These things happen,” he said. “Luckily no one was hurt.”
Donoqhue said he and his wife were at home when the tree fell and several limbs landed on the couple’s home. The tree did not cause any damage to the roof of the home the couple has lived in for seven years.
The neighbour, according to Donoqhue, had recently taken possession of his home.
“It just snapped off, but it came down gently,” he told the Advertiser.
Grand River owner Norman Trask said it’s seldom heavy equipment is needed to remove fallen trees. He said it happens about three times each year.
The decision to bring in the crane was because the tree trunk had split, making it dangerous for a climber to go in and dismantle the tree.
“It was structurally unsafe for a climber,” Trask said, adding the removal took about three hours.
He estimated the tree, a Manitoba Maple, was about 50 feet high and said it was difficult to determine its age. However, Trask said Manitoba Maples are known to crack in heavy winds or ice conditions.
Ice storm damage has kept the company, among others, busy with tree cleanup and removal.
