On this day in 1970, several residents of Page in Belconnen were fearful of the large diseased trees in the area. These trees often had a barrage of branches and heavy lumps of bark fall. Mrs John Small said the issue began as early as February.
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She shared that she was standing in the back garden with her infant son when a huge branch fell, narrowly missing them, from an old big tree that was close proximity to their house. Although the branch narrowly missed her, it did damage the clothes hoist and chunks of its bark were scattered.
Sadly, more branches fell after that incident with another falling from the same tree later in April that brought down a telephone line. Two more branches fell from other trees close by in Bynoe Place. Four men had to shift one of the branches that blocked the entrance to a battleaxe block.
A neighbour in De Vis Place was shellshocked when a heavy part of bark hit him in the back of the head after being carried by a strong wind. Mrs Small, in response to another branch falling across the road, said: "It's lucky the branch fell at a quarter to eight in the evening, otherwise the children who play around the tree could have been hurt badly."
Mrs Small's husband contacted the Department of the Interior to get a tree surgeon to inspect the trees when the branch first fell in February. Her husband was told the trees had become brittle as they were more than 100 years old. He was advised to get a quote for the removal of the tree and the lowest he received was $180, or about $2500 in today's money.
A spokesman for the National Capital Development Commission said the trees bore a white mark that meant the land developer had been obliged to leave them standing. He said: "All trees are inspected by a tree surgeon from the Department of the Interior parks and gardens branch and marked trees must be retained by the developer in accordance with his land development contract."
Mr Small shared the cost was too much for the residents to pay and along with his neighbours, signed and sent a letter to the minister for the interior, asking for the trees to be removed. Falling branches, especially from gum trees, are still a persistent threat in Canberra.
