The oak tree saved the Blue House on East Calaveras Street. Seriina Covarrubias was sure of that.
When she returned after the Eton fire, much of the Altadena neighborhood was in abandoned. The North Fair Oaks home and nearby shops had been destroyed. Her garage and her precious garden have been demolished. Her house was filled with smoke, but it survived, and so was the two giant orcs that protected it. She considered it a small miracle.
A few weeks later, the Army Corps of Engineers tagged the trees for removal, but the certified arborists inspected them as second opinions and considered them healthy. The Oaks, considered to be at least 60, appear to have not blocked the entrance, posed any danger or showed any green leaves.
That wasn’t a problem. They were cut back on the weekend for nearly two months after the fire.
“When I found this, it was as bad as thinking I’d lost my home,” said Cobalbias, 43. I might have appreciated the work they did to protect my home. ”
Seriina Covarrubias kneels beside a California live oak stump.
(Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times)
The estimated by arborist Rebecca Ratta, thousands of Altadena trees have been tagged for removal: oak, pine, sycamore, deodal ferns – trees that have been keeping the town natural for decades.
Now she and other arborists, landscape experts and residents have united to save the trees believed to have survived the fire and protect the lush grandeur that shaped the once-ravaged town.
Authorities have not released the number and species of trees that have been cut. The Army Corps employs certified arborists to assess tree branches and root damage within five years and the likelihood of death within five years, according to the Coordinated Joint Information Centre, a clearing house for agencies involved in cleanup.
An independent group of tree care experts who have been canvasting Altadena with Ratta for weeks believe that many trees have been mistakenly tagged for removal. While some people may have experienced smoke damage, they may have appeared dead in their naked winter appearance, the wounds beneath the bark surface indicate that much of the tree regrows. And after the rain, some have already begun their leaves – welcome clusters of green in the burnt landscape.
Ratta, who co-founded Altadena Green to gather volunteers the day after the fire, grew up in an unincorporated town above Pasadena. She knows these trees. She was following the sounds of chainsaws throughout Altadena to inspect the trees tagged for removal, checking out Cobalbias oaks just before they were chopped up. To remove signals by tied around the trees over blue dots and red ribbons, her team added a green ribbon labelled “keep.” I’m sure the trees will not fall and will continue to grow even after time, water and pruning.
Cobalbias contacted Los Angeles County and the Legion to let them know that they had no permission to cut the trees. She said she never made a real estate walkthrough or gave verbal or written consent. She had previously signed the entry form rights. This gave permission to clean up debris and allowed the subjective assessment of the removal of dangerous trees, but attempted to revoke it.
A neighbor next to Covarrubias, who lost her home, said she was told that maintaining the tree could slow the process of removing debris. She didn’t want that to happen, but she said Cobalbias, who shared ownership of the real estate line tree, should consult.
Covarubbias said her plea was overlooked in the end. She has since spoken with the Army about her experiences and hopes that the process will change.
County Supervisor Kathryn Berger recently addressed concerns about the removal of the tree during a community meeting.
“If homeowners want to keep them, they are strongly opposed to cutting down Altadena trees,” she said. “We were convinced that before the removal of the property began, we would have an opportunity to understand that property owners would be given at least five days of prior notice and whether the trees on their property were deemed unsafe or that removal would be necessary.”
Wynne Wilson examines the bark of a Deodar cedar tree that is scheduled for removal.
(Juliana Yamada/Los Angeles Times)
Altadena Green – Arborist Drew Ready, Stephanie Landregan, director of UCLA Extended Landscape Architecture and Horticulture Programs, and Wynne Wilson of Landscape Architect Designer, raised concerns with the Army through tree aging modifications. Wilson hopes the process will slow down as he fears more trees will be demolished unnecessarily. She said some trees have been misidentified, which will affect the overall assessment of the health of the tree.
Losing her home on fire, Wilson has done her mission to do what she can to protect the natural and historic beauty of Altadena. For years, visitors flocked to her garden, learning about the native plants and varieties she had a tendency to.
“It’s really heartbreaking because the trees can’t speak for themselves. They need us to take care of them,” she said.
The tree is loved in Altadena and represents the community’s connection to nature. For some, their losses are deeply painful, especially immediately after a disaster.
On a recent hot afternoon, she found some trees she believed to have been accidentally tagged for deletion. Among them are Redwood and two Sycamores. Residents were recording signs on trees on the sidewalk, not too far from the wreckage of her house.
“Do not delete the tree,” the message warned. “We need to save Sycamore!”
The new growth of the charred tree is lit in the sun with Wynn Wilson’s property.
(Juliana Yamada/Los Angeles Times)
Brandon Perez’s family home on Rubio Street was burnt out in the fire. Soon after that, the power company advised them to remove the giant Italian stone pines.
“It was very discouraging to see it go,” said Perez, 27. “It was definitely the second dagger.”
The tree survived strong winds during the Eton fire and was slightly damaged. Nicholas Araya, a treeman at Trecarella who worked with his family, questioned the suggestion that trees could pose a risk to the power lines.
“There was no reason for that to be cut,” he said. “All-and I’m not using that word lightly. All the arborists in Los Angeles are coming together and trying to find a way to stop this.”
On Calaveras Street, Cobalbias returned home for the first time since the trees were cut down. One of the trees obscured her meditation garden. The other protected her backyard from the burnt sun as her dog often ran beneath it. The squirrel and hawk will find rest in the branches.
All I had left was two stumps.
To her disappointment, the cut was jagged, not pretty, leaving her with no hope that they could grow up. The other trees on her property remained, but the loss of the oak was heavy, like the huge elms that assembled her home.
Selina Covalbias’s house returns to her house and says goodbye to the cut down tree.
(Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times)
Cobalbius, who has health conditions worsened by smoke toxins, does not know when or when he can return home. She said the earliest will be next January. The loss of a new tree makes it even more difficult.
Taking in what was lost, she dusted the top of the stump. She kneeled in front of them one at a time, quietly thanking her.
“I’m sorry, but I couldn’t save you.”
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