The historic and scenic trees along the Merritt Parkway are also presenting a deadly problem for drivers.
Trees have fallen onto cars three times in recent weeks. Norman Gamache, 74, of Westport, Mass., was killed when a tree fell onto his car during a storm on June 23.
"Every time this happens, I think most any of us who travel the Merritt does so holding our breath and looking upward," Gordon Joseloff, first selectman in Westport, Connecticut, said.
"What happened was one of those freaky, freaky things, I know," Gamache's nephew, Bob Gendron, said. "But why don't they just cut back the trees?"
The state regularly inspects, maintains and removes trees along the Parkway, but preservation officials said they can't cut all trees close to the road because of historic protections. The Merritt Parkway was built in the 1930s and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places for its landscaping, topography and ornate overpasses.
The Connecticut Department of Transportation has workers regularly check for trees that show rot or other problems that could make them vulnerable, but the trees that recently fell gave no indication of problems.
"If these were dead, dying or decayed trees, I'd say we need to do better work, but these were trees that were overtly healthy," department spokesman Kevin Nursick said. "That's the conundrum: How do we identify a healthy tree that could potentially become compromised during a weather event? I think that's virtually impossible."
