A Dundee man says it is “only a matter of time” before somebody is seriously injured at a popular woodland area – one year after it was devastated by Storm Arwen.
James Lamont, 36, has hit out at Angus Council over its failure to clear a large number of fallen trees blocking walking paths at Crombie Country Park.
Winds of more than 90mph uprooted trees across Tayside and Fife when Storm Arwen battered the region last November.
But while nature attractions such as Templeton Woods have since been cleared and reopened to the public – access to Crombie Park remains largely restricted.
Little has been done to remove the fallen trees, while warnings to avoid the woodland have been issued by AngusAlive – the arm’s length council body tasked with maintaining green spaces.
‘It’s really dangerous – that’s the bottom line’
James from Dundee, used to run in Crombie every week but says the park poses a health hazard, with people ignoring warning signs in the area.
He said: “There are huge trees and bits sticking up so it’s only a matter of time before somebody gets impaled or a tree falls on somebody and they are seriously injured.
“People are going there and thinking ‘oh, I’ll just climb over the trees’.
“It’s really dangerous – that’s the bottom line.”
He has written to both park rangers and AngusAlive about the issue.
The body replied to say it is working with Angus Council and tree surgery specialists to complete a “planned approach” to clearance.
It said teams required “additional expert support to deal with the size and scale of the issue”.
James is not the only park user complaining, with spates of bad reviews for Crombie Park left on Google over the past year.
One reads: “I would strongly advise against taking small children and elderly folks here currently due to the massive amount of trees fallen on the track blocking the way.”
Crombie Park ‘no longer buggy friendly’ due to fallen trees
A parent wrote: “A struggle to get round with fallen trees, but possible with a couple of diversions and a bit of stepping over tree trunks.
“No longer buggy friendly.”
And families have been left disappointed by the closure of Crombie’s playpark, which was also damaged in Storm Arwen.
James, a buying manager, added: “The children’s playpark was good and it used to be super busy and there was always families there.
“It is completely dilapidated.”
Colin Knight, senior manager at AngusAlive, says the organisation has worked to clear general areas and paths “as far as possible”, with small fallen trees being moved and left to the side of pathways.
He said: “The sheer volume and major scale of works required following this extreme weather event are beyond the normal expectations of our team.
“We are continuing to work hard with colleagues at Angus Council to complete a planned approach to tree clearance and the path network re-opening at Crombie.
“The play park at Crombie Country Park has been closed due to safety concerns and we are exploring options with Angus Council regarding the possible future replacement and renewal of play park equipment.”
Conversation