Trees still pose danger 2 months after storm

From the Daily News:

It took millions of dollars and thousands of hours to clean up broken trees and other debris left by the September tornado and storm that ravaged parts of Brooklyn and Queens.

But some remnants of that so-called microburst still sit, perched precariously high up in trees along sections of Middle Village and Glendale.

They are hanging branches, and some residents are worried they could come crashing down on cars and pedestrians on Cooper Ave.

"Cooper seems to be the forgotten block," said Robert Holden of the Juniper Park Civic Association.

"There are these huge branches hanging over the sidewalk. I wouldn't park my car on that street. All you need is one strong wind."

After spotting at least eight trees with broken limbs, Holden wrote to Queens Parks Commissioner Dorothy Lewandowski and asked her to look into the problem.

He even offered to have his civic group compile a list of potentially dangerous trees.

"I'm not an arborist, but some of these trees don't look very stable," he said.

"We want to know if there is an expert who is going around and doing an assessment."

Lewandowski promised to take care of the problem this week.

She said callers should provide specific information about a tree, such as nearby signs and street addresses, to help crews locate it.

"Eleven of 40 trees located along Cooper Ave. near St. John's Cemetery were found damaged after the trees were inspected today by Queens Forestry," she said in a statement.