Homeowner 'raging' after trees felled without consultation
Rodney Edwards • Published 26 Jan 2012 13:00
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Terry McCartney surveying the cut trees outside his home on the Belfast road.
FERMANAGH man Terry McCartney says he is "absolutely raging" after contractors working for Roads Service cut down trees he claims he owned outside his house.
Mr. McCartney who has lived on the Belfast Road outside Enniskillen for 12 years says he returned home on Friday evening to find workmen with chainsaws cutting down the trees along the roadside. But Mr. McCartney, who is seeking legal advice, says he wasn't consulted or asked by Roads Service first.
"We knew nothing about it until we got home and saw the roadworks and contractors on site," he said.
He describes the trees as the family's "pride and joy", saying they helped shelter the whole garden, and is adamant that what Road Service did was "wrong". However, a spokesperson for Road Service says the Department were only cutting down "its own trees" because of a "risk to road users"."As far as I am concerned the trees were in our ground. I have no doubt in my mind that if you were to dig underneath this ground you would see these fence posts to show you were the initial fence was," explained Mr. McCartney.
He added: "They told me that in their view the trees were sitting out and causing a hazard. Yet there's a telegraph pole close-by that is sitting out just as much, so I don't see what they're saying. I am not disputing that the overhang might have been out on the road at some time or another, but I do believe if someone had come and spoken to us there could have been some agreement made whereby a tree surgeon could have sorted it out".
According to Mr. McCartney, the workmen also damaged a BT cable outside his home during the process leaving him without telephone and internet access for a number of days.
"Six weeks ago, British Telecom came and asked to put in a new pole here. They put in a brand new pole and cut back some of the branches and so forth to allow the line go to the other side of the road. When these people were cutting down the trees they broke the line. We have no phone, no internet. The young boy was supposed to be doing one of these on-line homeworks, and I had to write a letter to his teacher at Portora to say he was unable to access the internet," he said.
Mr. McCartney says he is "very angry", and added: "Some of those trees were 50 or 60 years old. They'll not grow back in my lifetime".
Ulster Unionist MLA, Tom Elliott, who is looking into the issue for Mr. McCartney, has said that Roads Service "should have acted with more consideration".
"While I appreciate the urgency that Roads Service displayed in wanting to get a job done, their enthusiasm should have been balanced with a consideration for those their work would affect. It would have taken very little effort to approach the family and speak to them about the plans to remove the trees, particularly when they were mature trees which people enjoy and which just can't be replaced overnight.
"The result of the lack of consideration is that there is now a family left deeply resenting Roads Service, and feeling that they have been completed overlooked when the work had a lasting impact on their home. While we can't wind the clock back, I hope that Roads Service will show some more consideration in the future," he said.
A spokesperson for Road Service, said: "The trees were on the public verge and considered a risk to road users. No consultation with third parties is necessary when the Department is removing its own trees from public verges.
The Department apologises over the fact that the contractor's efforts to avoid the telephone line were unsuccessful. All avenues are being explored with BT to expedite its repair".
This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 26 Jan 12
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