Tree assessment expert says Paddlewheel Park death was preventable

A Prince George man died in a park after a tree branch fell and hit him on August 6th.

The City of Prince George offered its condolences and said they were reviewing the matter, but a tree assessment expert said that this was an easily avoidable incident.

Gary Collett has been teaching tree assessment at UNBC for 10 years.

“I know that there is a lot of over-mature cottonwood in that Cottonwood Island Park specifically. And a lot of failures and dead branches falling off. The same situation as in Paddlewheel Park, just large over mature trees that maybe aren’t being looked at closely enough,” said Collett.

Collett said there is a five-step process involved with assessing trees, and said details like the type of tree, age of the tree, the surrounding area, and flooding are all things to take into consideration when assessing trees.

“Broad leafed trees, or cottonwoods, they don’t live usually as long as conifers, so they’re more susceptible to decay.”

Collett said that parks and recreation areas require a tighter assessment for trees, as there is a higher chance of people being in the area, and wonders if Paddlewheel Park had any assessment at all.

“I don’t even know if it was assessed. If it was assessed, it should have been fairly evident, especially being an over-mature cottonwood with broken branches on the ground already that its likely to fail.”

He also added that these assessments don’t mean that these trees need to be removed completely, tree limbs can be removed, and trees can be salvaged.

“It’s the city, or whoever maintains that park or recreation area, it’s their responsibility to make the people who use those areas safe.”