"If the tree had been removed, my client would still be alive," said lawyer Alan Shapey.
Central Park. On February 25, 2010, Elmaz Qyra, 46, an Albanian immigrant living in Brooklyn, and married father of two, was killed by a fallen tree limb while walking through Central Park. Mr. Qyra had just finished his busboy shift at the New York Athletic Club.
Despite the Parks Department repeated claims that the weight of snow caused the tree limb to fall, court papers in the lawsuit reveal park officials had prior knowledge of the limb's dangerous condition but did not act in a timely manner. The Central Park Conservancy inspected tree No. 5140 on Dec. 13, labeling its dangling branches and deteriorated condition as "Priority 1 Immediate Attention," according to court papers. On Jan. 13, 2010 the tree near East 67th Street was again marked for removal but the Conservancy never followed through. A month later, the Brooklyn father of two was fatally struck. This information directly contradicts repeated statements made by the Parks Commissioner and press representatives at the time of the incident.
"Mr. Benepe, the parks commissioner, described the elm trees on the pathway where Mr. Qyra had been walking as some of the most cared-for trees in the country. They are looked after daily by the Central Park Conservancy, the nonprofit agency that runs the park for New York City. “They’re constantly monitored for Dutch elm disease and other diseases and dead branches,” Mr. Benepe said. “The branch that fell was a live branch, not a dead branch, ” Mr. Benepe told the New York Times.
“Having trees and large limbs come down simply because of the weight of the snow is a phenomenon that has been very rarely witnessed. I can’t recall anything like it,” Mr. Benepe said.
In a highly unusual move a few hours after the fatality the Parks Department issued a statement advising the public to avoid parks: "The breaking of the branch and the other fallen trees were likely caused by the accumulation of wet, unusually heavy snow," a DPR Press Release proclaimed. "There is no reason to believe that anything else might happen like that," Benepe said. At the time only a few media questioned the veracity of these statements.
In less than a year another person was badly hurt by a fallen Central Park tree limb which the Conservancy had prior knowledge of a dangerous condition but failed to act quickly. On July 29, 2009, Google engineer Sasha Blair-Goldensohn was left with brain and spinal cord damage when a four-inch thick branch fell on him. In December the family filed a $ 120 million lawsuit against the City and the Central Park Conservancy, alleging officials had prior knowledge that the limb was rotted, unsafe and should have been cut down.
"An examination of the tree limb, after this terrible incident, revealed that it was dead and rotted and in real danger of breaking and falling for a long period of time prior to the incident,” Mr. Papain, the plaintiff's lawyer said in a statement. “The limb’s condition should have been readily apparent to the city and the Central Park Conservancy, who were responsible for the maintenance of the park.”
The tree branch had been rotten and in danger of falling for some time, the city Parks Department admitted after the accident.
NBC reporter Gabe Pressman called on the District Attorney to investigate the latest tree death in Central Park.
This latest incident in Central Park comes a few weeks after two young brothers in Little Neck Queens were hurt when a rotted tree limb crashed onto a car with the brothers inside. The condition of the tree had been reported to the City according to reports.
"Neighbors were left to wonder why this accident had to happened after they had previously told the city the tree was dangerous."
– By Geoffrey Croft
Central Park
Authorities have failed to swiftly remove killer trees from Central Park, claims the family of a man crushed to death in February by a falling limb, according to the New York Post.
A decayed American elm was marked as dangerous weeks before one of its snow-laden branches fell on the head of Elmaz Qyra, 46, an Albanian immigrant and married father of two walking through the park Feb. 25 after finishing his busboy shift at the New York Athletic Club, a lawsuit alleges.
Elmaz Qyra, 46, an Albanian immigrant who lived in Brooklyn, had two teenagers: Erisa, 18, and Kleo, 14.
The Central Park Conservancy inspected tree No. 5140 this past Dec. 13, labeling its dangling branches and deteriorated condition as "Priority 1 Immediate Attention," according to court papers.
The high-powered Conservancy, which controls most of the maintenance for the city's most famous green space, again marked the tree near East 67th Street for removal on Jan. 13. But it never followed through, court papers claim.
A month later, the Brooklyn dad was fatally struck.
It was the second time in less than a year that someone was badly hurt by a falling Central Park tree limb. In July 2009, Google engineer Sasha Blair-Goldensohn was left with brain and spinal cord damage when a four-inch thick branch near West 64th Street fell on him.
Read More:
New York Post - June 27, 2010 - By Kathianne Boniello
A Walk In The Park - February 28, 2010
Our Town - March 4, 2010 - By Samuel Chamberlain
A Walk In The Park - February 25, 2010
A Walk In The Park - June 28, 2010
A Walk In The Park - June 26, 2010
Eyewitness News - June 6, 2010 - By Tim Fleischer
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