Girl, 13, killed by falling tree as she played with friends in Bank Holiday sunshine

[Legal Beagles]

A 13-year-old girl was killed by a falling tree as she played with friends in the Bank Holiday sunshine

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[righty]

Re: Girl, 13, killed by falling tree as she played with friends in Bank Holiday sunsh

Terrible poor child

I see the council instead of securing it as they should have as it's evidence removed it toot sweet

[Paule]

Re: Girl, 13, killed by falling tree as she played with friends in Bank Holiday sunsh

I see the council instead of securing it as they should have as it's evidence removed it toot sweet

Yep, thats councils for you.

They have done similar things near us, ie never filled in potholes that had been complained about, till a biker got killed after hitting it. Got filled in next day.

If the thing had been reported and no action taken, they should be prosecuted for corporate manslaughter in my opinion

[Amy]

Re: Girl, 13, killed by falling tree as she played with friends in Bank Holiday sunsh

Why must someone always be to blame?

It was an accident, a terrible accident, but it was just that, an accident.

If the tree had been cut down prior to the accident the Council would have had all the local do-gooders telling them what a heinous crime it was to cut down a tree. They would have been told how much the greenhouse gases would now rise and how they had just managed to double the carbon footprint of the country.

[Paule]

Re: Girl, 13, killed by falling tree as she played with friends in Bank Holiday sunsh

Amy, My post wasn't blaming anyone for this incident and i dont read righty post as doing do so either.

We were saying that councils are fast to remove evidence after the event.

I dont think we have mentioned anything regarding who was to blame for this incident.

As for my reference to a local incident, this is a separate matter, which has been well documented locally,
TAMESIDE Council is refusing to fill in potholes on a plagued road because it says they act as a cheap traffic calming measure
User comments - Potholes? No, it’s traffic calming! - News - Tameside Advertiser

Only two years ago my son was killed in tameside when the front wheel of his scooter went down a pothole and he lost control making him skid under a hgv. Tameside repaired the pothole straight after and denied it but somebody took photographs of them doing so. please sign my 4 callum campaign on The loss of a child killed through neglect on Tameside Roads and please be behind me when i hand in my petition later this year to parliament. The hgv driver will also be with me because it has also ruined his life. I love you Callum and they will not get away with it Callum's mum, stalybridge

[righty]

Re: Girl, 13, killed by falling tree as she played with friends in Bank Holiday sunsh

Amy how do you know it wasn't an accident waiting to happen & if not why so quick to remove the tree. How often considering all of the rain & winds we have had in recent times was the tree inspected, once a month, once every 6 months or perhaps once a year.

The point is that when trees of this size fall or break it very often is NOT an accident but something that could & should have been spotted long before this little kiddie was killed

Also as Pkea points out councils are very quick to sort things post accident rather than before it happens a failure which all to often leads to tragedies of this type & their prompt removal of the tree makes me very suspicious

What they should have done (& what most councils would do) was to secure it & place a safety zone around it until it could have been inspected by all interested parties. Police H&S, Liability Insurers etc

[stevokenevo]

Re: Girl, 13, killed by falling tree as she played with friends in Bank Holiday sunsh

I dont think the tree would have had public liability insurance :rofl: :okay:

[righty]

Re: Girl, 13, killed by falling tree as she played with friends in Bank Holiday sunsh

No but it's owner will ............. unless it's an underage orphan

[Amy]

Re: Girl, 13, killed by falling tree as she played with friends in Bank Holiday sunsh

If it is an accident waiting to happen it is, by definition, an accident.

Are you seriously suggesting that councils should inspect every single tree on a regular basis, just in case there might be something wrong with it?

Where would this sort of behaviour end? This is why some councils now do not allow hanging baskets for example or bunting to be tied above the street.

Should we all wear high visibility jackets all of the time too? If everything and everyone is a hazard we should also all wear hard hats.

You cannot stop accidents happening, if you could they wouldn't be accidents.

[righty]

Re: Girl, 13, killed by falling tree as she played with friends in Bank Holiday sunsh

No an accident is something unforeseen this may properly be described as an incident which is how the police now describe a collision between vehicles

Regular inspection should not only be done but is required to be done as part of the Authorities duties. It's called a 'walking inspection' & councils throughout the country undertake them a specific times throughout the year. You'll know one has taken place where you see chalk markings (usually yellow) on the road or the pavemment

So yes they are supposed to inspect every tree & this duty is particularly important after sustained bad weather and/or high winds

& a falling tree has now't whatsoever to do with hanging baskets

[Amy]

Re: Girl, 13, killed by falling tree as she played with friends in Bank Holiday sunsh

Oh right with you now, so there is no such thing as an accident - only incidents.

My mistake.

[righty]

Re: Girl, 13, killed by falling tree as she played with friends in Bank Holiday sunsh

No there are 'accidents' but they have to be unforeseen. If something is caused by another's neglect (as in not inspecting a tree often enough or after bad weather) it's an 'incident' Even the traffic police no longer call themselves 'accident' investigators. They call themselves 'crash' investigators.

It's also why you will often hear on the radio that so & so road is blocked/closed because there's been an 'incident' which can mean anything from a car crash to a shooting

[Amy]

Re: Girl, 13, killed by falling tree as she played with friends in Bank Holiday sunsh

See post #4.

[righty]

Re: Girl, 13, killed by falling tree as she played with friends in Bank Holiday sunsh

I've seen post 4 & apart from being wrong your point is what exactly? They would have got into to trouble had they tried to knock it down? Well no actually as if found to be dangerous they have duty to make it safe & if that means knocking it down then sobeit & even the tree huggers would agree with that

[Amy]

Re: Girl, 13, killed by falling tree as she played with friends in Bank Holiday sunsh

My point is, again - that it was an accident. I'm sorry if that is confusing.