Tree Warden Busy After

Freak Tree Accident In Brookfield

By Steve Bigham

Mike McCarthy’s phone has been ringing off the hook ever since last week’s tragic accident in Brookfield in which a dead tree fell on top of a passing minivan, killing Rosanna Curtin.

Newtown’s tree warden said he received 15 to 20 calls in the days following the incident from residents concerned about dead or dangerous trees near roadways.

“It was a knee jerk reaction to a situation,” Mr McCarthy said. “Do we have trees in town like that? Probably, but they are no more dangerous because of what happened in Brookfield.”

Nevertheless, the tree warden says he is concerned with the number of dead or dangerous trees along Newtown’s roadways. Combating these trees, according to Mr McCarthy, is an uphill battle. The money and the manpower are simply not there.

“I am very concerned. We have hundreds of dead or dangerous trees along roadways here in town. We are incredibly behind as far as tree work goes. To catch up is just a daunting task,” Mr McCarthy said.

On average, the town funds about $30,000 a year for the removal of trees, which, according to Mr McCarthy, is enough money for about 30 days worth of tree work. All of the work is currently sub-contracted out to local tree removal companies. However, Mr McCarthy believes the town will need a two-man bucket crew working full time for two years in order to catch itself up.

  The 2000-2001 town budget does have money for a much-needed bucket truck, but specifications for the truck are not yet complete.

The tree that fell in Brookfield happened to lie on private property; however, there are many trees near roadways that are the responsibility of the town. It is Mr McCarthy’s job to determine which are public and which are private. Those in the right-of-way are town trees, according to Mr McCarthy, who says he spends most of his time as tree warden in the town clerk’s office. There, he searches through various property maps to establish where public road right-of-ways begin and end.

“It’s all according to right-of-ways. Some right-of-ways are wider than others,” Mr McCarthy explained.

Under normal protocol, the tree warden will wait for someone to call and advise him of a “situational” tree before making an inspection. Do you know of a dead or dying tree near a roadway in Newtown? Call the highway department at 270-4300.

Mr McCarthy, Newtown’s tree warden for nearly two years, owns his own tree company and has been doing tree work since the mid-1970s. He has a forestry degree and is a certified tree warden through the State of Connecticut.

Town Still Faces Suit  Over Fallen Tree

 The town is still facing a lawsuit alleging negligence in connection with a major accident involving a fallen tree on Boggs Hill Road in September 1995.

In the accident, James E. Murchison was struck by a massive falling tree limb while driving a Geo Tracker westbound past 176 Boggs Hill Road on September 4, 1995, at about 2:45 pm.

Also named as defendants in the lawsuit were Tree Warden John Mead and Public Works Director Fred Hurley.

The lawsuit states that at the time of the accident, Stacey Murchison was a passenger in a car being driven to Danbury Hospital to give birth to her first child. At the time, according to the suit, James Murchison, her then-husband, was driving the Geo behind the car.

As Mr Murchison passed 176 Boggs Hill Road, a large dead limb extending over the roadway snapped and fell from a sugar maple tree standing on the north side of the road, according to the suit. The branch fell directly onto the Geo, crushing the hood and causing it to flip, throwing Mr Murchison from it and causing him serious multiple injuries.

The lawsuit claims the fallen limb had been dead, wholly or partially, for at least eight years before it fell. The suit further claims that the town had not properly cared for the tree from which the limb fell.

In response to the lawsuit, Mr Hurley said, “It was an act of God in the middle of a storm,” and the town should not be held liable for the accident.