Ecclesall Road tree: Photos as ancient Sheffield poplar narrowly misses homes and flattens two cars

Residents told The Star how they heard an “almighty bang” at around 5.30pm on Thursday (September 19) as a limb from the 10m-tall giant close to the junction with Pear Street split and fell.

Miraculously, the limb did not damage any buildings and no one was hurt, although two cars were crushed and two more were caught underneath.

One neighbour said: “I heard a crack, a creak and a bang- it was like something out of a movie.

“At first, I honestly though there had been a big accident, like a bus had hit something.

“It was a beautiful tree, it’s really quite a shame.”

Another man told The Star he was having a drink at the nearby Champs Sports Bar when it happened.

“I was having a pint when I heard this almighty bang,” he said.

“I thought it was a car accident.

“If it had fallen the other way into the road it would have reach Champs, - who know how many would have been hurt.”

South Yorkshire Police closed the road from 7pm until 9.40pm while tree surgeons cut down any more branches that could pose a risk to the public.

The tree - a hybrid black poplar - is on the Woodland Trusts’ Ancient Tree register, and reportedly measured more than 4m around the base.

However, records say it had been weakened by a tree-decaying fungus named ganoderma, a type of polypore.

Glenn Bushell of Sheffield Tree Care Ltd told The Star: "It's a shame as it was a landmark, but it was a very poorly tree, actually.

“We had been working with the owners to apply for permission to take it down.”

See our gallery of photos from the scene below.

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