Arabic version: الطبيب الشرعي يجد أن وفاة بسبب غصن متساقط كان يمكن منعها

According to ABC News, a coroner has found that different actions could have prevented the death of South Australian school teacher Judith Anne Ditter, who was killed when a tree branch fell onto the car she was travelling in.

Mrs Ditter, 59, died in November 2020 while travelling with her daughter and two other passengers on Mount Barker Road in Stirling, in the Adelaide Hills. A heavy branch from a tree on a nearby property struck the moving vehicle. Her daughter suffered serious injuries.

In findings published on September 24, Acting Deputy State Coroner Judge Ian White said an arborist who examined the tree after the death found signs that it posed a risk, including sounds of an extensive hollow, bark patterns and discolouration. Judge White said the limb failure could have been avoided if the defect had been identified and remedial action taken.

He said opportunities existed in 2010 and 2012, when Adelaide Hills Council considered development proposals for the property, to require arborists’ assessments of regulated and significant trees near planned works. Judge White also found Mrs Ditter would likely not have died if the owner had removed the tree immediately, or within a 12-to-18-month period recommended by an arborist.

Judge White made seven recommendations to the Local Government Association of South Australia, the Minister for Planning and the Minister for Infrastructure and Transport. They include employing arborists in council planning departments, improving homeowners’ awareness of tree-safety responsibilities, and requiring notification where government work near significant trees may have caused damage or safety risks. The LGA said it would carefully consider the recommendations, while the state government said it would respond in due course.