A very large mature beech tree in a private garden next to the busy A626 was identified as at critical risk of failure.
We were shocked to see the condition of the tree when we first entered the garden and in an effort to stabilise the tree we deployed ten heavy-duty ratchet straps across a three-metre length of the stem. Before we did so, the split could be observed opening and closing by up to a centimetre as the tree shifted in the breeze! Intensive risk assessment of the tree determined the tree unsafe to work on any more than strictly necessary in person, and working from the highway was an unwelcome option from the point of view of the Highways department due to the traffic sensitivity of the site and the traffic congestion impacts it would have had, so a mechanised option from the garden side was decided upon...
After thorough initial assessment we raised emergency concerns with the local authority. We were able to reach the out of hours team to gain permission for temporary traffic management of the highway whilst we secured the stem with heavy duty ratchet straps.
Whilst awaiting further highways permits to undertake the actual removal, it was agreed that traffic management could be installed on the highway during rush hour periods to prevent standing traffic under the tree, which was a particular issue during school start and finish times due to the high school a matter of a few hundred metres away.
We mobilised a 30m tracked crane, a forestry excavator, a 12" woodchipper and a 32t lorry loader within 2 days of the initial visit, to work from the garden and safely dismantle the crown in just 1 day.
The next day we used our 25m tracked spider MEWP and a bigger capacity crane working from the road side to dismantle the larger log and main stem into a hooklift bin for removal to our yard.
The safety measures we took, and the equipment we brought to bear on the task proved more than adequate to take the tree down safely and efficiently from positions in the garden and on the road. The large crown was chipped into a hooklift bin on site, whereas the stem was transported back to our yard, which when the ratchet straps were removed fell apart in to 2 pieces!
