Dog walker's near miss as branch falls from tree

A woman and her dog had a lucky escape when they narrowly avoided being crushed by a large branch falling from an ancient tree.

The dog walker was just leaving Locksbrook Cemetery in Lower Weston near Bath on Tuesday evening when she and her pet had their close shave.

The incident was caught on CCTV cameras belonging to the New Crown Inn on the opposite side of the road.

A spokesperson for Bath and North East Somerset Council (BANES), which owns and manages the cemetery, said staff were "very relieved no-one was harmed," adding the tree was inspected last June and found to be in good health.

Charlotte Symonds, manager of the New Crown Inn, said the falling branch "sounded like gunshots going off".

She said the dog walker "was a bit shaken up", but both she and her dog were OK.

Symonds remarked that had the woman turned left out of the cemetery gate, instead of right, she would certainly have been hit.

"She had her headphones on as well so I don't think she would have even heard it coming," Symonds said.

The landlady added: "A lot of my regulars comment on that tree, saying 'it looks like it's going to come down'.

"It was quite scary because if it had come down lower, it could have crushed the side of the pub."

"We're very relieved no-one was harmed," said councillor Manda Rigby, BANES cabinet member for communications and community.

"Our tree team was on site within an hour.

"They found signs of structural weakness within the branch that would not have been visible when the tree was inspected last June and was found to be in good health."

Rigby said the tree team thought "exceptionally hot weather followed by heavy rain are likely to have contributed to this unforeseeable event".

She continued: "We have inspected the tree and further works were carried out on Thursday."

Mature, seemingly healthy trees suddenly shedding a large branch in summer is a well-known phenomenon known as "summer branch drop".

Ecologists don't know its exact cause, but believe it is a combination of water stress caused by long periods of hot weather followed by a heavy downfall, as well as the weight of summer foliage.

It typically occurs on calm, hot and humid afternoons. Deaths are very rare, but in 2012, 31-year-old Erena Wilson was killed by a branch falling from a tree in Kew Gardens in Richmond.

Follow BBC Somerset on Facebook and X. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.