"Every time I hear the wind I get scared": Life on 'terrifying' street where people 'fear someone could soon be killed'

Residents of Beauclair Drive in Wavertree, south Liverpool, are living in a state of fear as trees continue to fall on their street. The most recent incident occurred this weekend during Storm Darragh, which brought heavy wind and rain to the city.

Locals claim that this is the fourth tree to have fallen in recent years, causing damage to homes and vehicles, and raising concerns that someone could soon be killed. Despite repeated pleas to Liverpool City Council to address the issue of the remaining hazardous trees, residents feel their calls for help have been ignored.

Among those affected was 78 year old Sandra Collins, who was forced to evacuate her home due to the risk posed by the falling trees. The recent widow described how she was alerted to the danger by the sound of twigs and branches hitting her front windows, followed by a police officer knocking on her door to advise her to leave for her own safety.

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She said: "It has really shaken me up. My neighbours took me in and then I had to stay at my son's house for a couple of nights. I haven't been sleeping at all because I think a tree is going to fall on me. I'm terrified. Every time I hear the wind I get scared. I have been struggling to get over the death of my husband and this is a lot to cope with."

She added: "It feels like there is going to be a fatal accident on this road soon and the council is just not listening. A tree fell through the bedroom of another house recently, just two doors down from me. How much warning do the council need before they do something?", reports the Liverpool Echo.

One local acutely aware of the perils posed by Beauclair Drive's trees is Johanna Burnett, 55, who experienced significant damage to her property last year when a tree toppled onto it.

She said: "Me and my husband were upstairs at the time, he was very ill with cancer, when we heard a huge bang. We looked in the bathroom and the plaster had come off the walls.

"The tree had crashed into the side of the house, it had also pushed the driveway wall into my car. The branch of the tree also hit the top of my car."

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Mrs Burnett, whose husband sadly died three weeks later, said she found the city council very hard to deal on the matter and relied on the fire service to come out and help her. Eventually she says she was told by a council worker that she needed to speak to her insurance company.

She added: "Me and my insurance company tried to get the council to take some responsibility for what had happened but they just kept saying it wasn't their fault."

Speaking about the issues this weekend, she added: "I couldn't believe the timing of it, it was almost exactly a year on. Everyone in the road feels really anxious every time its windy, we all know that a tree is probably going to come down."

Nick Harris, 62, a resident of Beauclair, expressed his concerns about the potential danger posed by the trees. He said: "Nothing is being done to resolve the appalling condition. Almost every year a tree falls causing damage. We live at the bottom end of Beauclair and have three poplar trees leaning precariously. Opposite is King David School where trees are leaning literally over the playground."

"We really cannot understand why the council is refusing to do anything substantial. Eventually they completed lower pruning to allow assessments of each tree. The arborist that attended told us that they were all dangerous and needed to be removed."

He warned: "It will only be a matter of time before someone is seriously injured or a fatality will occur. The trees are overgrown and dying. We along with other residents live in fear."

Councillor Carl Cashman, who has been fighting alongside the residents, said: "Since becoming a councillor for the area it became apparent that residents in Beauclair Drive have huge concerns over the safety of trees in their road."

"Last year I canvassed the road and every resident felt the same and singed my petition calling on the council to re-evaluate the trees. Every time I have taken this up with the council they have said that a tree survey was undertaken some years ago and that the trees are safe. Clearly this is nonsense and the residents know it.

He added: "I have written to the chief executive to ask for immediate action. It shouldn't take a tragic death to make the local authority act."

A Liverpool City Council spokesperson responded, saying: "We routinely inspect all trees across the city and assess the level of risk they pose to the public. Removing trees entirely is a last resort and we consider all other alternatives first.

"In October, our teams visited Beauclair Drive to assess the health of the trees and any risks to residents. During this visit, we removed excess growth from the base of the trees to allow us to carry out a detailed inspection. At the time of this inspection, no trees were found in a dangerous condition that meant they needed removing.

"Unfortunately, the high winds and rain that we experienced during Storm Darragh caused one tree to fall on the street and more than 50 city-wide. We responded to the incident and are currently clearing the area. Following this, we will closely examine the stumps and roots to see if any risk remains. If anyone is worried about the condition of trees in their local area, they can report them through www.liverpool.gov.uk/trees."