According to media articles and photographs uploaded to Reddit and Instagram, a chainsaw-wielding vandal cut down a number of shade trees along South Grand Avenue and other locations of downtown this weekend, dealing a severe blow to Los Angeles’ delicate urban canopy.
The Los Angeles Police Department informed The Times that it had no information about the tree destruction, and an email and phone call to the city’s Urban Forestry Division remained unanswered Sunday.
Social media photographs showed a number of trees being destroyed at the base, while others were chopped several feet above the pavement. A handful of the fallen trees were still linked to their trunks by a single thread of bark or wood.
According to Reddit user TipTapMyWipWap, every tree between 1st Street and Wilshire Boulevard has been taken down. However, a check of images indicates that a few remain standing.
Photos on Instagram show toppled trees near the junctions of Olympic Boulevard and Hope Street, Olympic Boulevard and Figueroa Street, and Broadway and Cesar Chavez Avenue.
Social media users blasted the perpetrators, with some noting that the cuts were made right before Earth Day.
“So, eco terrorism on the day where most are having their earth day celebrations? Seems very intentional,” said one user.
Many people mentioned that security cameras are everywhere, therefore video evidence should be available for investigators to study.
