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UPROOTED TREE SMASHES VAN ON 87TH STREET

November 21, 2016 | 9:30 AM
in NEWS
17

tree-van

A tree came down hard on a van parked on 87th Street between Columbus and Amsterdam Avenues on Monday. Police blocked off the street as they dealt with it.

As we noted, there’s a high-wind advisory in the city today. A wall protecting a construction site on Columbus also came down on Sunday night.

tree-van2

tree-van3

Thanks to Sharon for the top two photos and Vedat Gashi for the bottom photo.

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Chuck D
Chuck D
9 years ago

Thanks DiBlasio!

0
Reply
Steph
Steph
9 years ago

I noticed there is a brand new sidewalk next to the tree and the tree fell toward the street. Street trees often have their roots dug up when new sidewalks are installed, making the the trees unstable and eventually killing them. The fact that it fell towards the street indicates that this may have been the case.

0
Reply
Barbara
Barbara
9 years ago

He was so happy when he found a good parking spot.

0
Reply
Treehugger
Treehugger
9 years ago

Might be a new sidewalk? Contractor may have cut roots in laying down cement. Usually the sidewalk comes up with the tree.

0
Reply
Anon
Anon
9 years ago
Reply to  Treehugger

If you are right do we need to worry about every tree on that block being blown down? It is lucky this one only hit a van.

0
Reply
Woody
Woody
9 years ago

I blame Bush

0
Reply
Rob
Rob
9 years ago

The tree was angry at ‘out-of-towners’ (Pennsylvania plates) taking up valuable parking spaces in our neighborhood. 😉

0
Reply
Wendy
Wendy
9 years ago

Sad to see such a beautiful tree come down. I passed it this am and it’s very big. Will take decades for something else to replace it.

0
Reply
Kenneth
Kenneth
9 years ago

Tree was angry that Pennsylvania voted for Trump.

0
Reply
Alex
Alex
9 years ago

I feel that the story is not “tree smashes van” but “beautiful street tree falls”…and also, a van was dented. These trees are the lifeblood of the streets.

0
Reply
Upper West Side Wally
Upper West Side Wally
9 years ago
Reply to  Alex

I agree with you. Until those roots start pushing up the sidewalk and old ladies start taking nasty tumbles.
You can either take out the tree (life blood!), or you cut some roots under the sidewalk and hope for the best.

0
Reply
Cyrus
Cyrus
9 years ago
Reply to  Alex

Just a guess, but I bet the owner of that van will disagree with you

0
Reply
the_the
the_the
9 years ago

That should buff right out.

Feel sorry for the tree though.

0
Reply
Lin
Lin
9 years ago

Very sad to see such a beautiful tree go down. It was lucky no one was hurt.

0
Reply
ctp
ctp
9 years ago

The owner of the car is a super on the block (despite the plates). When I saw the tree this morning, I was most interested in how it had no visible roots, a tree that large and old would have had a large root system and the sidewalk would have come up with it. Very odd.

0
Reply
Woody
Woody
9 years ago
Reply to  ctp

So he registers his vehicle in Pennsylvania to get cheaper insurance rates. That’s not only illegal but also risky. If the insurance company investigates and finds out that he parks the car in NY regularly, they can refund his premium and deny his claim based on a fraudulent application.

0
Reply
WestSide_Mimi
WestSide_Mimi
9 years ago

Luckily no one was hurt.

0
Reply

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