Edmontonians angry at city response after public tree damages car

An Edmonton woman filed a claim to get back hundreds of dollars after a tree branch fell on her car, destroying the windshield. CTV News Edmonton's Nav Sangha:

Some Edmonton residents are frustrated by the city’s response after one of its trees damaged a vehicle more than two weeks after it was reported as a problem.

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Grovenor resident Callan Wassenaar said he sent in pictures of a sick tree on his boulevard about a month ago after the City of Edmonton sent out newsletters asking residents to look out for emerald ash borer (EAB) infestations.

“Several of the limbs were dead or dying, a lot of the EAB symptoms were showing. Small shoots near the bottom of the tree, dead branches and that sort of thing,” Wassenaar said.

“Sixteen days later, the tree came down and damaged our neighbour’s vehicle.”

That neighbour was Eryn Dodd, who moved in next door about a month ago. She said she was looking out her window and saw the branch fall.

“It was pretty big. It smashed my windshield,” Dodd said.

Dodd has filed a claim with the city to pay for the damage, which cost her about $500. The city said it will take up to four months to investigate and make a decision.

Dodd said the city should pay because it owns the tree and knew from Wassenaar’s report that there was a problem with it.

“It’s not really that hard to put together, like a tree from the city fell and broke my windshield,” she added.

A City of Edmonton representative told CTV News Edmonton on Wednesday that the city can’t comment on a specific claim.

In a statement, Mark Beare, director of infrastructure operations, said city trees are assessed every two years and that arborists are ready to respond at any time to hazards like broken or downed limbs that are reported through 311.

“Several times this season, crews have responded to storm damage across the city. This is typical for this time of year and we are not seeing any trends out of the ordinary,” Mark Beare, director of infrastructure operations said.

Beare said EAB has not yet been found in Edmonton, but that it is monitoring for the pest and residents with concerns over it or Dutch elm disease – including dying branches – should contact 311.

According to Wassenaar, branches have continued to fall off the tree, prompting him to make multiple follow-up reports to 311 since the initial complaint.

Wassenaar said he has also reported seven other ash trees in his neighbourhood he believes are showing signs of EAB infestation. He’s frustrated with how long it’s taking the city to investigate, since tampering with a city tree could get him fined.

“They’re the ones that issued the EAB alert, they should be the ones going out and dealing with the trees when people like myself report them,” he said.

“If we’re reporting them and they’re not doing anything about it, then what’s the point of reporting,” he added.

Both him and Dodd are concerned the tree – and others in the area – could do more damage while they are “stuck waiting on the city” to follow up on the 311 reports.

“Thank God it was only my car. What if it was a person or me getting out of the car,” Dodd said.

“It’s crazy,” Wassenaar said. “I try not to walk on the sidewalks even near the trees right now, because that’s how concerned I am about them.”

Wassenaar said the tree that damaged the car was recently looked at by a city forestry officer, but he doesn’t yet know what will happen with it.