Geoff Hall is concerned that large cypress trees and overgrown grass near his Berwick home are fire hazards due to a lack of maintenance of the trees and grass.
By Kelly Yates
A BERWICK couple fear that large cypress trees and overgrown grass near their home are fire hazards.
Geoff and Ruth Hall, who live along Collins Crescent in Berwick, say more than 20 homes in the area would be in serious threat if a fire broke out, due to the lack of maintenance of the trees and grass.
Mr Hall, who has been living in Berwick for seven years, said the old trees were less than 40 feet from his back door, right near the Monash Freeway.
“They are very old and dead to large degree,” he said.
“If there’s a fire in them all of the houses will go straight up in flames.”
Mr Hall was also concerned about the overgrown grass.
“It only gets cut once or twice a year and it’s not enough,” he said.
Mr Hall has raised the issue with the Casey Council, VicRoads and the local CFA but according to the 64-year-old, no one is taking responsibility for the situation.
“This is a deadly disaster waiting to happen,” he said.
City of Casey parks and reserves manager Trevor Griffin said Collins Crescent had recently been inspected and the street trees and nature strips were in good condition.
However, according to Mr Griffin, as a precaution the council has arranged for grass on a very small, narrow parcel of land to be cut in the coming days.
Council will also liaise with VicRoads, which manages the Monash Freeway that backs onto some of the properties in the street, to ensure that the vegetation is maintained to a suitable standard.
