GEORGE NEWS - A giant oaktree in the George CBD came crashing down yesterday morning at 11:00 flattening six parked cars, but people rushing to the scene heaved a collective sigh of relief to find that all the vehicles were without occupants, leaving nobody injured.

The ancient oak fell down with an earthshattering crash on Wednesday and a crowd of curious onlookers soon gathered to survey the damage to the vehicles in the parking lot of the Nedbank Building on the corner of York and Langenhoven Roads.

When Debbie Janse van Rensburg returned to find her car, a 2007 Tata, totally squashed under the tree trunk, she swallowed a lump in her throat and told the George Herald, "I worked so hard to pay off this car." She had been doing Christmas shopping when the tree collapsed onto the tarmac. After retrieving her parcels with some difficulty, Janse van Rensburg immediately phoned her insurers. Her mother, Maureen Spencer, who was there to provide support, said, "Thank God Debbie was not in the car."

The huge tree trunk seemed to have split in half and bystanders speculated about possible 'dry rot' in the oak being the cause of the accident.

Of great concern to Jenny Millard, wife of beekeeper Garrick, was a hive of bees whose cone had become dislodged and bees were swarming around the tree trunk. "Working with chainsaws may anger them and set them off, it is highly dangerous."

This information was conveyed to the acting George Municipality's Neels Barnard who arrived to give directions to the municipal workers, who dressed in protective clothing, were busy cutting the branches away so that the car owners could get to their vehicles. A while later George's mayor, Councillor Charles Standers, was seen arriving on the scene whilst talking on his cellphone.

"It felt like a earthquake, my container was shaking. I'm just glad the tree did not fall on my office," said Mike Wilding of Bingo's Car Wash, whose freight container is right next to the old giant. "I feel lucky to be alive," he said. Others on the scene said it sounded like a crashing helicopter when the tree dropped.

More photos here.


A giant oaktree in the George CBD came crashing down yesterday morning at 11:00 flattening six parked cars.

ARTICLE AND PHOTOS: PAULINE LOURENS, GEORGE HERALD JOURNALIST

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