Felled tree hits Auckland house

Photo: BEN WATSON Photo: BEN WATSON Photo: BEN WATSON

SOMETHING WENT WRONG: A gum tree damaged a Glenfield house when it landed on it.

CRASH LANDING: The silver dollar gum tree was left sprawled atop of 48a Tamihere Drive in Glenfield.

EXPENSIVE MISTAKE: Arborists felled the gum tree with one cut to its base.

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Photo: BEN WATSON

LUCKY ESCAPE: Tanya Whitworth avoided injury when the approximately six metre tree hit.

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The felling of a neighbour's gum tree resulted in a buckled roof and shattered conservatory for a couple in the Auckland suburb of Glenfield.

Tanya Whitworth was in tears at the sight of the damage caused to her home at 48a Tamihere Drive by a silver dollar gum tree measuring up to six metres tall.

She was in the conservatory when the tree, cut down by contractors, toppled on to it.

The window and framework were damaged, as well the roof, particularly above the master bedroom downstairs.

"I had a feeling something was going to go wrong," says Mrs Whitworth, who was uninjured.

"I thought hang on, there's no ropes and it's over 20 feet, it's huge."

Neighbours Dan Hartley and Laura Gerin say they rushed to the house when they heard a "bang and someone scream" about 9.30am yesterday.

At the section below were arborists from Baker Tree Services, with a chainsaw, a tree stump and the tree sprawled across the Whitworths’ home.

Baker Tree Services owner John Baker says larger trees are generally taken down in pieces but not always.

"Something’s gone wrong and the tree went the wrong way.

"Depending on what we find there will definitely be some disciplinary action. It was an expensive mistake and could have been worse."

He says the company is investigating and any compensation will be covered by insurance.

Mrs Whitworth says she was previously told that the tree’s branches which overhung the Whitworths’ property would be trimmed, and other trees removed.

Mrs Whitworth says she went outside to speak with the arborists when they began work on Monday morning and when she returned to the house the tree hit it.

Her husband Philip says he can’t understand why the North Shore City Council gave consent for such a large tree to be felled in such a way.

"It should have been cut down in stages."

Council compliance and monitoring team leader David Frith says a resource consent was given for the removal of three gum trees.

"We look at the tree in terms of amenity but the responsibility of removing it safely is with the property owner and the person doing the cutting."

- © Fairfax NZ News