Fallen giants

SOME of Byron Bay’s most iconic trees were among the many lost in the wake of Cyclone Alfred, including a century-old tree outside the Railway Friendly Bar and three Norfolk pines.

The Rails’ duty manager Zak Sezer said the bar shut at 5pm last Thursday as conditions worsened, and the Weeping Fig came down overnight.

“We found out through our Rails group chat when we saw a few pictures on the community board,” he said.

“I came to check it out the next day and it was all taped up. A lot of locals love sitting around it and it’s where the bands hang out when they’re performing here.

“I’m obviously pretty sad. We’ve had a few people coming in and asking about it.”

The remains of a Norfolk pine tree that was cut down at Main Beach in Byron Bay. Photo: ANGELA SAURINE

While some locals, including Christopher Dean from tea tree oil company Thursday Plantation, originally hoped the tree could be saved, an arborist determined its roots had snapped.

Instead the licensee plans to replace it with another mature tree.

Dee Tipping, who is a former member of the Byron Bay Town Centre Committee which planted many trees in the 1990s, was heartbroken to lose the tree.

“I’m devastated,” she said. “We love our trees. Railways Park is the centre of our wonderful town and it was at the entrance to Byron Bay Railway Station.

Dee Tipping and Christopher Dean with the fallen tree at The Railway Friendly Hotel in Byron Bay. Photo: ANGELA SAURINE

“There were two birds there yesterday and today that had a nest in the tree.”

Byron Shire Council also authorised the removal of one Norfolk pine in Jonson Street and two near Byron Bay Surf Club in Apex Park after an arborist determined sustained strong winds had weakened their root systems, leading them to sway dangerously.

Council staff are monitoring the remaining Norfolk pines and assessing trees on Council-managed land, warning that more may need to be removed.