A team of special tree officers are rooting out dangerous trees near Essex schools in a bid to save lives.
An eight-year-old schoolgirl was crushed to death by a falling tree as she played during her lunch break at a Surrey primary school.
But an Essex County Council spokeswoman said the move to check trees near schools in Essex had nothing to do with the tragic death of Rianna Davenport.
She said: "It's got nothing to do with the accident. It is something we had been doing before, inspecting the trees on different sites."
The spokeswoman said work checking trees at 560 primary and secondary schools across the county had begun at the start of January.
It is expected to take two years to complete.
Libraries have also been targeted for the work along with other places used by the public.
The work, which the spokeswoman said could save lives, is being carried out by a team of three council employed arboricultural officers.
No dangerous trees have yet been found.
The spokeswoman said she did not have a figure for how much the work was set to cost but she said the council spent between £90,000 and £100,000 a year on specialist tree services in Essex.
Published Thursday, February 6, 2003
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