Wednesday, Sept. 19, 2018
Hurricane Florence delivered a punch to Charlotte's tree canopy, causing some to fall before the heavier bands even arrived. The city's chief arborist provides a post-Florence assessment of Charlotte's signature trees.
Charlotte’s tree canopy – one of the city’s crown jewels – took a hit from Hurricane Florence, though the damage wasn’t nearly as widespread as what eastern North Carolina experienced.
The city "certainly lost hundreds of trees," chief city arborist Tim Porter told Charlotte Talks. "We had the third-largest 911 emergency tree call volume on record" during Florence, he said.
Trees down all over #oldfoxcroft. #Charlotte #florence pic.twitter.com/xWtT0Ig34g
— Sue Laguna-Whang (@suelagoo) September 16, 2018
The tree canopy was already seen as vulnerable before Florence because of its age, as well as our development boom. A report to the City Council last year said the canopy was on track to shrink over the next three decades.
After weathering Florence, what’s their condition now?
GUESTS
Tim Porter, City of Charlotte chief arborist
Mike Davis, City of Charlotte, director of engineering and property management