Media response - tree branch fall in Aberfoyle Park

Published on 12 March 2025

Response to ABC News.

• The journalist asked for comments about a tree branch fall in Aberfoyle Park that injured two residents.

We were shocked this morning to hear about the tree branch fall at Marilyn and John’s place, and we’re relieved to hear they’re doing OK under the circumstances. We reached out to Marilyn this morning to check on them and let them know an arborist would be attending today to reassess the tree and schedule any further required pruning work.

The incident is a reminder of the fact South Australia’s current extremely dry conditions can cause even healthy trees to shed limbs or branches due to prolonged heat stress, as warned this month by the South Australian State Emergency Service.

We received a call from Marilyn about a fallen branch on New Year’s Eve, and one of our staff attended on 2 January to arrange a tree crew to come and collect the branch, plus remove another hanging branch in the tree. The team also advised Mrs Fuss that a branch hanging over the driveway could be pruned to reduce its weight if she lodged a request, which she did on 16 January.

At that time, the tree wasn’t considered to pose an immediate danger to people or property. With non-urgent jobs such as this that require an elevated work platform, we allocate these in batches by geographical region. Our team were due to complete these jobs in the Aberfoyle Park region in the coming week or so.

We take tree safety very seriously and actively monitor trees in public spaces as part of our ongoing tree management and maintenance programs.

Onkaparinga is the state’s largest council area with a mix of urban and rural areas, and we have hundreds-of-thousands of trees are spread across streets, parks and reserves. Managing such a vast tree network is a complex task, particularly during periods of drought.

With the Bureau of Meteorology forecasting a warmer than average start to autumn, everyone needs to be vigilant when it comes to heat-stressed trees. You can help protect yourself by minimising the time you spend under trees, including by not parking cars under large trees or placing play equipment under them.

For those who want to support the health of their local street trees during these dry conditions, you can help boost our watering program by occasionally providing a small amount of water, particularly for younger trees. It’s entirely optional, but every effort counts.

For trees on private property, we recommend seeking advice from a qualified arborist.

Residents can report any concerns with trees on council land by calling our Customer Relations team on 8384 0666 during work hours or 8384 0622 after hours.

ENDS