PARKS & GARDENS UNDER RESOURCED TO PREVENT TREE DISASTERS

 Hersey Liu

A tree that fell and killed a mother and a son

The Cape Coast Metropolitan Director of the Department of Parks and Gardens Obeng Assimah has disclosed to CENTRAL PRESS that his department lacks the necessary equipment to prevent tree disasters during rainstorms.

 He said the department is under resourced and therefore cannot determine which ageing trees need to be  cut down to prevent them from endangering properties and lives.

However, before this critical question was to be answered, the personnel in the Department of Parks and Gardens raised yet a bigger concern, which was potentially an implication that the tragedy on May 19th may not entirely be an accident. “Because we are under resourced, it is difficult for us to maintain the conditions of the trees in Cape Coast.” Mr. Obeng Assimah told us after the accident took place, “For example, we did not have a pruning gun to cut the branches of the dead trees, or motor vehicles to go around and exam which trees need to be pruned or cut.”

He expressed the difficult situation that the department was facing. Because of the limited budget, many field works could not be accomplished, and staff members were unable to fully understand the conditions of trees in Cape Coast. When asked that whether they were aware, before the accident that the giant tree fell at Pedu junction was life threatening, Mr. Obeng Assimah suggested, “the falling tree accident was a total surprise for us.” He added, however, “We learned the residents swept the rubbish and gathered them underneath the trees, and bent them. That could be why the trees fell.”

The Department of Parks and Gardens was also unable to identify, very likely due to the shortage of equipment, the potentially dangerous spots for trees falling in Cape Coast. At the same time, Mr. Obeng Assimah did advice the residents to “move away from old trees when there is a storm”.

The heavy rainstorm sweeping through Cape Coast on May 19^th 2012 caused a giant tree to fall by the street side killing a young mom and her 14 year-old son in the store.

Right across the street from the Pedu elementary school, lay the broken branches and chunks of wood, blocking half of the traffic lane. The messy scene was caused by the heavy and powerful rainstorm that took place on May 19^th 2012. A tall old tree with an estimated height of 12 meters, was knocked down by the fierce wind that lasted for roughly one hour, causing the tragic death of a Nigerian mother and her son who was only 14 years old.

According to the eyewitness at the scene, the mother and the child were hiding inside their T-shirt store when the storm hit this area. “This huge tree by the road was shaking in the wind. Many pedestrians and store owners were running away from the tree, in fear of it falling.” Said Mr. Samuel Okyeire, a store owner selling on the same street with the Nigerian woman. “She and her boy closed their store and were hiding inside. When the tree started to fall, we screamed to them but they did not hear. The tree was then smashed into the store while the mom and the boy were still inside.”

The brutal rainstorm left a rather brutal and chaotic accident scene. The 12-meter tree fell across the main road, fortunately without hitting any automobiles passing by, but smashed right into the iron stall and torn it apart, as if an over-weighted giant stepped upon a small tin can. The mother was found dead immediately, but the boy was breathing slowly when the nearby store owners arrived and attempted to rescue him. The roads were blocked entirely by the falling tree, so the crowd took a short cut and sent the boy to the nearest hospital immediately. However, the injury from the accident was so severe that they lost the young boy on their way to the hospital. The neighbors managed to contact the father, who was working in Nigeria at the time, to return to Ghana.

Despite this sad and unexpected tragic accident, Alhaji Yusif Farouk Adamu, the Metropolitan Coordinator of National Disaster Management Organization in Cape Coast, commented that this rainstorm that started around 4pm in the afternoon, did not cause any other injuries aside from this case. He suggested that the cause of these tragic deaths was due to the fragile branch of this aged tree, which was not strong enough to withstand such a heavy storm. When asked whether planting trees around the neighborhood could potentially create danger or threats to people who live around the area, he explained, “We need more trees to serve as wind breakers and absorb energy from the storm, but at the same time, ensure that old and weak trees or branches are to be removed. More planning needs to be done to prevent residents from living around the dangerous spots.” This rainstorm raised a critical question, as well as a challenge to both the Disaster Management Organization and the Department of Parks and Gardens, at the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development in charge of tree planting and safety. The balance of planting trees to provide windbreakers for the city of Cape Coast, versus examining and removing the ageing and life-threatening trees to ensure neighborhood safety, needs to be achieved urgently.

For future prevention of such accidents caused by heavy storms, Alhaji Yusif in National Disaster Management Organization also suggested that residents “should not wait for support but get prepared before the storm visits” and “find families and friends who are living at high hills or open areas”, so in case of the flood or storm, they are able to move around freely and avoid the accidents. He also emphasized that education to the local community would be the key focus for the raining season and the locals needed to be taught how to escape from disasters.

In terms of the future supports that could be provided by the government, the Department of Parks and Gardens suggested that despite the limited resources, they advise the residents to contact the department if they perceive any potential dangers from the surrounding trees. The department will try its best to arrange a field visit and cutting of the trees accordingly. However the department also made the plea to the local government to “provide more resource for the department”, so they will be better equipped and more prepared for the prevention of future accidents.

Alhaji Yusif from National Disaster Management Organization also reassured the residents that “The rescue team is prepared” in case future accidents occur. At the same time, he expressed his genuine hope that with the cooperation of Disaster Management Organization and Department of Parks and Garden, as well as the education for disaster preparation for the locals, tragic accidents like this could be avoided in the future for the residents of Cape Coast.