WORK to ensure a 100-year-old oak tree at The Bowes Museum, in Barnard Castle, will live to see another day after being hit by lightning has been carried out by arborists.
Though there were few signs of burn marks to the tree, the trunk had split, leading to fears it could be a danger to visitors to the museum.
Arborist David Oliver was employed to assess the tree. He bolted a steel bar through the split section of the trunk to hold it in place.
A three-man crew returned to the museum last week to complete the work, climbing into the canopy to thin out internal branches and reducing the height and spread of the tree.
They fitted specialist “cobra bracing” to limit the motion of the upper limits and reduce the stress on the split.
Richard Emerson, from David Oliver Arborists, said: “Taking out some of the internal branches will help give it a bit of light and there won’t be as much strain on the trunk when it moves.
“We’ve brought in the side a bit and given it a little tidy up so it should be good for a few years now.”
He added: “I didn’t know it was hit by lightning, but there were a few burn marks at the bottom of the split on the trunk.
“I assumed it had suffered damaged from high winds.”
Wood from the tree was shredded on site and removed, to be recycled.
