The Vancouver Park Board is investigating what caused a large tree to fall in the city’s West End.
The decades-old Catalpa came crashing down on Burnaby Street near Nicola Street Thursday, damaging the sidewalk and crushing a vehicle.
"My alarm got triggered and I thought maybe somebody bumped into my vehicle or something like that and I got the surprise that a tree fell on it," said Sean Wormsbecker, the owner of an SUV that received minor damage.
The park board said the tree is between 60 and 80 years old and appeared to be healthy.
City staff weren’t sure what caused it to topple over, but the board later said this week’s stormy weather is likely to blame.
“All signs point to the heavy rains and winds in recent days as contributing to the tree’s fall,” spokesperson Godfrey Tait said in an email statement Friday.
Crews quickly began clearing away the fallen tree, but the job is expected to take up to two days.
With files from CTV Vancouver’s Ben Miljure
