–how a falling tree has shattered a pensioner’s dignity and privacy
MORE than 36 hours after an uprooted palm tree crashed into a house at Kiskadee Drive, East La Penitence, Georgetown, the lone occupant, 73-year-old Shieldston Roberts, is still counting his losses; moreover, he remains in deep mental turmoil over the continued security of his home.
This newspaper visited the home yesterday and saw that the tree had already been cut up into pieces and removed from the location. Nevertheless, a huge portion was still lying over a trench behind the affected building. Roberts said the job was done by workers of the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Georgetown (M&CC), who worked until late on Sunday night.
The eastern and southern sections (back portion) of the concrete structure were mostly affected.  The walls on both sides were damaged beyond repair, and the zinc sheets covering the bedroom, kitchen and bathroom areas were ripped out and strewn about the back yard.
Roberts said Deputy Mayor (Ag) Mrs. Patricia Chase-Greene visited him and offered sympathy on behalf of City Hall, but gave no indication as to who would take responsibility for repairing the damaged structure, which entailed hundreds of thousands of dollars for repairs, and tens of thousands of dollars for replacement of his personal household effects.

Glimpses of the destruction caused at Shieldston Roberts’s home after it was struck by a falling tree.

He said the land lady’s son also visited the home and attempted to assess the extent of the damage.  However, late yesterday, nothing had been done to secure the building, and this is causing this 73-year-old man much mental stress, since work demands that he be away from home. The interior of the building is now exposed to the elements, and that can obviously lead to further destruction to his personal property.
“It’s a difficult situation.  I’m at my job, but my mind is back here,” he lamented yesterday.
The tree, approximately 60 feet tall, was standing in a marsh next to a trench behind Roberts’s home. And, at around 13:45 hours on Sunday, it came crashing down on the building, creating a huge hole in the back wall. The trunk of the tree, which spanned almost the entire length of the house, fell across the man’s bed, his bathroom and laundry area, extending to the front room in the north eastern side of the building. Considerable damage was caused.
The tree fell shortly after the widower had left to go to the barber’s for a haircut.  He had earlier booked with the barber, but no specific time had been agreed on.  Roberts said that, shortly after noon, as he was going to take a nap, he received a telephone call from the barber, who advised him to come over at 13:00 hrs to have the job done.  On receiving the call, be immediately left the house.
He is convinced that, had it not been for the phone call from his barber, he would have been killed in his bed when the tree fell on it.
The distraught widower expressed concern that his mishap had happened only a few months after a four-year-old child had been killed in her bed, and her parents and siblings had been injured by a falling tree.  He recalled that, a few days after that incident, trees overhanging residential buildings in that part of East La Penitence had been felled. However, the felling team never reached his section of the community, even though it is not very far away.
Roberts is hoping that swift action can be taken to assure his safety and that of his home, from both environmental and criminal elements.