Matthew Preusch A tree branch rests against the southwest corner of Alexander Hall. No one was injured, but the event brought to mind a more tragic occurrence two years ago when a large tree killed two then Pomona Sophomores, Brian Cressner and Pete Kurahashi.

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A limb, estimated at over 1,000 pounds, fell from a eucalyptus tree on College Avenue Tuesday, damaging a part of Alexander Hall. Upset Pomona administrators and students want to see the city take steps to ensure that the trees lining College Avenue pose no further threat.

"It seems that the city is more concerned with preserving the historic look of [College] Avenue than saving lives," said President Peter Stanley. "The next call they are going to get will be from our lawyer."

Sheila Vasantharam ’03 was walking towards Sixth Street on the east side of College Avenue at around 2:55pm when she heard what sounded like a "truck crashing" behind her on the sidewalk.

"I didn’t know what had happened," she said. "I heard a crash and [the branch] had fallen where I’d been walking, about 15 or 25 feet behind me." Vasantharam was one of several people in the area, which ten minutes previously had been crowded with students going to and from class.

Stanley was not in his office when the branch came to rest about ten feet from his window, and no one in Alexander was hurt, though some reported that it felt like "the beginning of a large earthquake."

Stanley said that the trees had troubled him especially in the last two years, dating back to February 23, 1998, when then sophomores Brian Cressner and Peter Kurahashi were killed in their car by a falling eucalyptus at the intersection of College Avenue and Fourth Street.

Assistant City Manager Bridget Hiller was present, along with two maintenance vehicles, city workers, and a city contracted arborist, to discover what caused the limb to fall and assess the damages to Alexander.

"The city is responsible for the maintenance of this and 23,000 other trees," said Hiller "[The eucalypti] are assessed every six months by certified arborists."

Hiller, who believes the city will have to address the problems posed by the eucalypti in the near future, says that the semi-annual assessments tell the city what limbs and trees need to be removed.

John Garbo, a certified arborist who is contracted by the city, said that the problem that caused this limb to fall would not be visible to observation from street level. Garbo said that the branch was growing at a steep angle, causing the bark to be "included", which means that a fissure was growing between the limb and the trunk itself. This fissure, he said, was hidden by old bark and debris stacked in the crotch of the branch.

"That [fissure] should have been assessed," said Garbo, who then pointed out that many of the eucalypti on College Avenue have stacks of debris in areas that otherwise might show rot or fissures.

According to Dean of Students Ann Quinley, the tree from which the branch fell was checked by the city as little as two weeks ago.

Eucalypti, as some have pointed out, are not native to Southern California, but rather Australia. While the soil in Claremont is not a big problem, explained Pomona Maintenance Director John Gibonny, the climate is.

"A lot of the [eucalyptus] have lived over 100 years, but they do have problems with disease, and in hot weather, like July and August, limbs start to drop off," said Gibonny.

Matthew Preusch Assistant City Manager Bridget Hiller (left), and others assess the causes.

Gibonny, who accompanies city arborists on their semi-annual inspection of the eucalyptus, said that the city has an "aggressive" tree maintenance policy and usually do a "thorough job" on inspection. However, he added that the city does not use bucket-trucks, maintenance vehicles with hydraulic lifts, to clean debris away from areas that might show rot.

"If there was visible evidence of rot, that tree would’ve come down," said Gibbony, adding that to change city practices concerning the Eucalyptus the college would have to apply "plenty of pressure from the right people." Asked who those people would be, he replied, "Well, you saw Peter [Stanley] down here. He looked pretty upset."

The tree from which the limb fell is scheduled to be removed on Saturday, as several arborists have concluded it is unsafe. According to Pomona officials, repairs to Alexander will begin immediately, with concerns about billing worked out in the future.