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DANGER: INJURY / DEATH BY FALLING TREE BRANCHES - Shit Happens in Madrid...

Ana Botella, Mayor of Madrid: "Branches Have Always Fallen in the City"

Botella also wanted to point out that in the capital there are two million trees "which are cared for by the Council". The mayor of Madrid has asked the companies that manage the trees to increase maintenance and surveillance after the fall of another branch from a tree that wounded five people last Thursday.

"The truth is that Madrid always has branches falling," she assured as a matter of fact, in relation to recent incidents caused by the collapse of some branches that have left several people injured.  The unions claim that these accidents have much to do with the cuts [no pun intended]. 

"The city has been without equipment intended only for maintenance of street trees," said Felix Carrion, union secretary Service Commissions Madrid.  In this regard, the Mayor explained that in Madrid "the council takes care of two million trees in the city," but that "there have been some difficult weather circumstances."

The mayor of Madrid has also ensured that after the first accident, the City Council established a committee of experts to study the circumstances that have led to the loss of these trees, and possible causes.  In addition, Botella instructed the companies that manage the woodland to increase surveillance and maintenance.

Ana Botella statements were given after, during rush hour on a busy street in central Madrid, five people were injured last Thursday by a falling branch on a large terrace where they were sitting. Among the injured was a child and an elderly man.

In total, there have been 15 accidents caused by falling trees in Madrid. The last happened 48 hours ago, when a huge branch fell on a car parked on the street. The worst, however, occurred in the Retiro Park in June. A branch weighing 400 kilos killed a man who was in the gardens with his children.