It could have been a tragic long weekend for one Burnaby family.
Chris Evans' four-year-old son Kailer was riding his bike at Burnaby Fraser Foreshore Park on Friday, May 19, when a large tree limb fell on him.
His grandmother, Carol McLeod, who was with him at the time, said it was a horrifying experience.
"I was in shock," McLeod said in a phone interview. "I couldn't believe it."
As McLeod was walking with her other grandson, who was collecting leaves, Kailer was on his bicycle up ahead of them, she said.
"All of a sudden we heard a cracking sound, and then I thought, 'What the heck is that?'" she said.
When she looked ahead to where Kailer was, she saw something fall down, she added.
"He was completely buried (by) this branch with all the leaves and everything," McLeod said. "The actual trunk of the branch didn't hit (him), but it was about six inches that - it could've hit his neck."
Kailer was wearing his helmet, but even so, if the branch had landed on his neck, he could've had his spinal cord damaged, McLeod said.
"He was just beside himself," she said. "He's scared to go to the park now."
Kailer's father went to the park afterwards to take some photos and check on the bike, which had its front wheel completely destroyed, he said.
"This could've been a really nasty weekend for us as a family as opposed to how it did turn out," Evans said.
They have since replaced his bike with a hand-me-down, Evans said, but his son is still nervous about cycling in the park.
Evans has heard from Coun. Anne Kang, whom he emailed regarding the incident, as well as from Dave Ellenwood, the city's director of parks, recreation and cultural services.
Ellenwood expressed his regrets that the incident happened and said crews would be in the park assessing the situation.
Evans said he has no issues with the city but hopes future incidents can be prevented.
"We'd just like the city to take care of the park and make sure this doesn't happen to anyone else," Evans said.
Ellenwood said the department had crews out within a few hours of the incident, and the branch was already cleared off the trail.
Staff assessed other trees in the area as well, to ensure there weren't other hazards, he said.
"It's very difficult to outwardly see if a tree branch is about to fall, or to determine if it's unhealthy or if it's subject to failure," Ellenwood said.
On a periodic basis, the city sends staff to inspect trees along pathways, trails, roadways and boulevards, to see if there is a risk, he added.
"If we see something, we'll deal with it," he said, adding the city deals with broken branches immediately.
Trees generally suffer from damage during transitions between seasons, such as late fall and early spring, particularly during windstorms, according to Ellenwood.
"After windstorms we get so many calls and have so many situations we have to address," he said. "We have to do them on a priority basis."
If anyone notices a problem with a tree in a Burnaby park, they should contact the park patrol at 6042947227.
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