Leeann Brady stands in front of the Cottonwood Photo provided
The California drought has claimed yet another victim - this one a decades-old 65-foot-tall cottonwood tree in a south Orinda yard. Richard Osborne and Leeann Brady were preparing to remove the tree, realizing that it had rotted from the inside out, when it suddenly toppled Aug. 13. No damage was done, although the tree did temporarily block a residential street. Osborne feels they are "sort of lucky that it fell" because initial estimates for its removal ranged from $1,800 to $3,000. Now that the tree is down he expects to pay half that amount. C. Dausman
Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA