== A Man Cuts A Tree And The Police Immediately Quarantine His Property
thumbnail :
As water gushed out of a tree he tried to cut, Peter’s reaction was to contact the fire brigade. Their timeliness surprised him. The reason they prioritized the situation he didn’t know. Peter was shocked when the firefighters informed him that he had to evacuate his property within an hour. But it would be apparent after his property was quarantined.
Quarantine Everything
- Advertisement -
Although weird, this situation shouldn’t require his property’s restriction. Peter’s family required an explanation which the firefighter squad failed to provide. Fortunately, Peter knew the exact person to call, so he called as they packed. Later, Peter would come to realize the reason his estate was restricted. But how did so much water flow from the lonely tree? And what made the local government authority care so much about it?
Peter wasn’t a newbie to felling. On his property, there were enough trees to keep him occupied forever, though Peter only required a few to maintain the fireplace every winter. Until today, he has had no issues with it. Usually, Peter uses his truck to travel through the woods to the large woodland on his estate. Trekking would waste time. But his annual winter journey for firewood would end differently this year.
Tree Selection — The Oak Tree.
- Advertisement -
Peter’s favourite tool was the axe, the chainsaw was too risky for him. So he was prepared for the day’s task as he drove to the forest with the tool. But it ain’t gonna be easy as it seemed. It’s quite hard to select which tree to cut. He wasn’t going to damage the environment for wood. But which trees should be felled? With different varieties of trees in the forest, Peter based his selection on the trees’ species, distances from one another, and the forest’s edge. He wanted to maintain the forest outlook as he pruned it. For quite some time, Peter had wanted to hew a particular Oak tree. But he had always procrastinated.
For years, he had told himself that it would be enough for a few winters after another year of growth. Today was different. After years of its growth, Peter had decided to cut the tree down today. He ensured he had the best tools. He bought high-quality axes both in size and shape, he wanted to get a chainsaw, but he relented. Truthfully, Peter never wanted to get a ‘better’ tool, but from interactions with friends and professionals, he figured out that he had to at least use the best primitive tools as a chainsaw was out of consideration for him. This doesn’t completely nullify the danger though.
The Hole
- Advertisement -
The tree was bigger than he last remembered it to be and Peter almost couldn’t bear to cut it though he had to. But things took a new turn as he got to work with one of his new axes. Blow after blow, the tree didn’t seem to have received much damage, he invested more effort as he continued hacking though with little progress. Peter thought about whether he had overrated his ability. Using all his strength, Peter lunged as he chopped at the tree. Eventually, he hit it deep, though it wasn’t satisfactory it is still progress as he might be able to push it down after chopping deeper. It required a lot of time and power.
He had a breakthrough on the third hit. He pushed the and created a small hole by twisting off the bark with the ax. As he moved closer, Peter never foresaw the next event which changed everything. He prepared to hit the hole which seemed to be empty as he squinted into it. Water furiously rushed out of the hole before Peter could look into it, he jumped to avoid getting wet. A tree became a fountain? Peter quickly moved his truck to avoid being stuck in the thick mud forming around the tree. Peter never knew how far the water would spread.
A precarious situation
- Advertisement -
Peter returned after packing his truck far away from the tree only to discover that the water discharge seems to be getting faster and would fill up his property if left unchecked. He was stumped. Peter was surprised by the fire department’s quick intervention as he didn’t have much hope for their response when he called them. Water control should be easy for them he thought. But he was asked to move.
Although he wasn’t certain whether they could curb the disaster, Peter was thankful for how seriously the firefighters took the matter with the presence of various equipment. While on phone, he was required to desert the tree area as they decided to meet on a road a safe distance from the tree. Peter ensured to take a picture of the tree as he left. As he arrived later than the fire truck at the edge of his estate, Peter could hear the loud sirens as well as see the flashing lights along the road.
Making a report
- Advertisement -
The hole seemed easy to seal, but why did they seem to be worried while rushing to his property? The fire brigade chief alongside at least five firefighters departed the truck. The chief required Peter to stay and narrate how the incident occurred as others headed for the tree after getting the description from Peter and seeing the small water stream forming on the property.
With his property endangered, Peter wanted to help, not to stay away but the chief required him to stay and explain himself. After Peter’s narration, he was told that his estate would immediately be restricted for at least a week, and he had an hour to pack away with his family. The chief couldn’t be bothered to entertain Peter’s many questions. He went to join the others as Peter drove home. Peter while on the way called his wife to start packing and promised to explain when he got home.
The move
- Advertisement -
Peter wasn’t certain where his family would go, he knew they needed to quickly pack up their belongings. After an hour, the firefighters were at the door, requiring Peter’s family to move out. Melinda stopped Peter from going as she refused to move without getting an explanation. The family left when Melinda relented after 10 minutes of an unfruitful debate, but Peter noticed that the water had stopped and the firefighters were erecting a camp around the tree. What is happening?
The event caught the attention of the locals who crowded to fathom what the fire engine was doing for so long. They saw nothing as the firefighters deterred everyone from moving close. The firefighters didn’t give a clear explanation when the locals required to know what caused the incident.
A Week at Melinda’s Parents’ House
- Advertisement -
Peter’s family went to Melinda’s parents who lived near the city borders. The firefighters told them that they might be able to go home in a week when all would be fine. That seemed too long to fix an incident that didn’t seem serious. Although the area was restricted, Peter couldn’t wait that long, he wished to know what was wrong. He wasn’t bothered about the possible danger.
He would check it out that night. To his dismay, even at midnight the property especially the tent around the tree was still strictly guarded. Nobody could get to the tree. It all seemed very confidential. Disappointed, Peter returned to Melinda’s parents to sleep. He only had a way to figure out the situation. He wasn’t hesitant to call the next morning.
Tennis Friend
- Advertisement -
Peter was quick to contact the fire department because he was very familiar with the tennis club commander, a kind family friend. But the commander seemed to have been avoiding his call after he had reported the situation, even though he had previously told Peter to inform him of any incident.
In the morning, all of Peter’s efforts to contact the commander proved futile. Peter eventually got his opportunity to know everything. After a brief hesitation, the commander told him to come to the station after he got in contact with him. Before getting there, though he tried, Peter had no sensible explanation for what was going on with his estate. Thankfully, the commander seems to have one. On arrival, he was guided to the office where the commander awaited him on the second floor. The commander was serious and he had a map of the area on his desk, on which Peter was quick to spot his estate even before greeting. The map seemed old though.
Clarity
- Advertisement -
The commander explained to Peter that he was aware that the leakage would happen ever since Peter told him his home address. This explained why he wanted Peter to contact him in case of an incident. There was a water source beneath Peter’s estate, it was a big strange pond that empties slowly and refills constantly with groundwater, a hidden lake that the authorities had decided to make an emergency source for droughts common in the area. It was gradually put aside after lack of usage for years.
Why it happened
Some buildings displaced from Peter’s estate were part of the transportation and extraction system of a nearby water refining plant. The flood situation occurred because Peter by making a hole in the tree provided a breakthrough point for the pressure built-up in the already filled pool. Peter wasn’t informed because the pool was on his property and the government was unwilling to pay water fees. This was a difficulty for the government and an opportunity for Peter.
- Advertisement -
Reaching an agreement
Peter eventually came to an agreement with the government not to charge them any water fees as long as his property was redeclared after the water damage. To avoid a reoccurrence of the incident, they started checking the water pressure regularly, with the hope that such an incidence doesn’t occur again.
Comments
Post a Comment