Family 'gutted' after memorial tree cut down

The tree was cut down by a remote-controlled mower at a community centre near Truro

A woman from Cornwall has described her family's pain after contractors mistakenly cut down a memorial tree to her late mother with a remote-controlled mower.

It was planted by Kerensa Wright and fellow volunteers at a community centre near Truro after her mother Sandy Wragg died aged 69 in 2021.

Ms Wright said workers came to cut the grass by the centre but destroyed the tree in the process.

Cormac, which is owned by Cornwall Council, said it was "truly sorry for any distress caused to family and friends by this incident".

Ms Wright and her daughters at the tree planting ceremony

Ms Wright said: "It was just really gutting.

"It meant a lot, I was born on the estate, my mum lived on the estate.

"She meant a lot to a lot of people, it was a way of remembering her, something for the kids to look at and think of the good times."

She said her daughter was there when the tree was planted at Malpas Road Community Centre in 2022 and had watched it grow.

"To think somebody would just cut it away, I'm sad, a little angry, my 15-year-old daughter is gutted," she said.

"I would like an apology and it would be nice to have the money reimbursed or an equivalent tree provided."

Kerensa Wright with her mother Sandy Wragg

Ms Wright said she would "visit the tree most days" and a friend who lived close by would send pictures of the tree, a malus "snowcloud", when it was in bloom.

She said the same friend had learned the tree was gone on 24 June.

"The grass had been cut, the tree was gone, pulled away," she said.

"The protective barrier around it had been smashed to pieces, only the roots remained."

The memorial tree was planted in memory of Sandy Wragg who died in 2021

Ms Wright said the memorial's location was meaningful too as Ms Wragg was a regular user of the community centre's services and well-known in the area.

Her friend Ruth Mason also planted a tree for her partner Godfrey Allen at the same site but that one was unharmed.

She said they were helped by a tree warden to get council permission to source the trees and plant them.

"Young people on the estate were involved in the planting and helped care for them - the community was totally respectful and they came to no harm in two years," she said.

The roots and scattered fragments of the protective barrier were all that remained

Cormac said the tree was cut down by mistake and it was working to find a meaningful replacement.

"We are truly sorry for any distress caused to family and friends by this incident," it said.

"Regrettably, the tree was cut in error while using a remote-controlled mower.

"The steepness of the site makes it unsafe to cut or strim the area manually."

It said no report was made of the incident as the operator did not realise it was a memorial tree.

"We would appreciate the opportunity to meet with Kerensa and work together to find a meaningful replacement," it said.