Mature willows felled
Staff photo/Greg Peerenboom One of many mature weeping willow trees lies decapitated as a result of Tuesday’s F0 tornado which touched down on the property of Cooper Marsh. A Raisin Region Conservation Area work crew of two are cleaning up the mess.
Stephen Sangster was doing his daily chores at Cooper Marsh east of Cornwal when the skies became ominous.
“I didn’t know about the (tornado) warning,” Sangster said of the Environment Canada public notice early Tuesday afternoon.
But the experienced outdoors worker knew enough to get inside before an F0 tornado descended briefly on a well-know spot along County Road 2 — the parking area for the marsh, where a number of majestic weeping willows stand.
“You should have been here (Wednesday); there were branches everywhere,” he said, as he and co-worker methodically chainsawed and collected the branches and logs.
Sangster is sad to see the score or so willows felled or badly damaged.
But most of them, he said, were nearing the end of their life.
The clean-up won’t cost the RRCA any extra, he said, noting how recent maintenance had slowed due to the ongoing drought.