Costa Mesa To Axe 100 Killer Trees After Fatal Accident

Photo by AA(Noname) via Flickr

As a result of the controversial tree incident in Costa Mesa that left one woman dead, officials will remove 100 trees in and around the Costa Mesa area. Irvine Avenue will be closed between Westcliff and Drover Drives until 8pm on Wednesday.

The fatal accident occurred on Thursday, September 15 when a eucalyptus tree fell onto the car of 29-year-old Haeyoon Miller, crushing her to death. There was some dispute about the rescue mission, as witnesses reported that she was alive and responsive after the initial tree fall but was crushed to death when rescuers accidentally dropped the tree onto her car while attempting to lift it from the vehicle.

Firefighters quickly disputed witness accounts, claiming that Miller was unresponsive when crews arrived at the scene just five minutes after the tree fell. Costa Mesa Fire Capt. Fred Seguin assured The Daily Pilot that "at no time did [the tree] come down on the patient ... and do any pressing injuries." Jennifer Schulz from the Newport Beach Fire Department told ABC 7 that "the tree was lifted and at that time the firefighters stabilized it and it never went back down."

While we weep silently at the thought of 100 trees getting the axe, this precaution deems completely necessary to avoid future fatal accidents.

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By Lauren Lloyd in News on September 21, 2011 10:00 AM

Comments [rss]

Europeangirl

It angers me but yet it is so typical to overreact by cutting down over a 100 trees. Why not just inspect and trim them. Irvine Avenue will never look the same! If I lived on the street, I'd sue the city.

ianaleah

Replace with trees with limited height - solves the problem.

mallhonitor

A stop sign near my house fell over and left my neighbor moderately wounded. It seems only logical that we should remove some stop signs, too.

Doran

Are they replacing them with anything? Perhaps a native species? Removing 100 large trees from a neighborhood is not an insignificant environmental change.