George, who resides in Daggafontein on Kestrel Road, has since been waiting for the metro to rectify its act of negligence.
“Initially, there were trees holding up the bigger tree that eventually broke my wall,” he says.
“Once the metro chopped down those trees, the big tree across the road from the wall bent over into my yard.”
George, identifying the potential damage the large tree could cause, decided to report the tree to the metro so it could be cut down.
“They were told that they should cut the tree at a certain angle so that it does not fall onto the wall completely,” he says.
“They dismissed that guideline, went ahead with cutting the tree, which then fell onto my wall and collapsed a part of it.”
When George reported the matter to the metro, he was reportedly told that he should obtain three repair quotes before the matter could be resolved.
“They then told me that I should claim the damage from my household insurance,” he says, “and I don’t understand why I should have to do that, considering that the damage was not caused by me.”
“That would also mean that I must pay an excess out of my own pocket.”
The broken wall still has not been fixed, which causes issues of safety and security for the resident.
He feels that the short wall is now an even bigger safety risk now that it has been broken.
“I am going to leave the wall like this,” says George.
“Why should I have to do the metro’s job for them?
“They must be liable for the damage caused.”
Questions have been sent to the metro for comment.
