On the night of 15th/16th October 1987 Brentham lost 48 street trees in the great storm. Most streets on the estate had fallen trees, some causing significant damage.
Residents and friends of the estate raised over £1,200 as a contribution towards the cost of replacements and the London Borough of Ealing planted 90 new trees.
A ceremony to mark the replanting,watched by 30-40 residents, took place at the corner of Brentham Way/Fowlers Walk on 13th February 1988 at which the Mayor of Ealing “planted” an oak tree and unveiled a plaque to commemorate the occasion.
Below is a gallery of photos showing some of the scenes residents woke up to on 16th October 1987 ending with the replanting ceremony, the plaque and the oak tree as it is today.
Click on any of the images to start a slide show and click the X to end the show.
- Outside Winscombe Court on Brentham Way
- North View
- Outside Winscombe Court on Brentham Way
- Winscombe Crescent
- Neville Road
- Holyoake Walk
- Ludlow Road
- Meadvale Road at the junction with Ludlow Road
- Outside Holyoake Court in Holyoake Walk
- North View – looking towards Holyoake House
- Brentham Way – looking up towards the crossroads
- Looking North down Brentham Way
- Winscombe Crescent
- The replanting ceremony – 13th February 1988
- The plaque unveiled by The Mayor of Ealing.
- The Oak Tree as it is today (October 2014)
I remember it very well. In the early hours of the morning, a good neighbour knocked on doors and said should people move cars, but nobody was quite sure where we could move them to as storm was raging across the whole area. We lived in Neville Road at the time and lost a bough of the oak tree in our garden. We then walked out into the road and I just remember it being as said above, a domino effect of trees, so sad. But really heartening to see the picture of the Oak tree planted after the storm .
I remember it so well. We were living in Fowlers Walk and looking down Brentham Way there was a ‘domino effect’ of fallen trees. I took the day off work as I couldn’t drive off the estate due to road bockages. I walked around Brentham viewing the damage – everyone was out chatting and it created a great community spirit.
Pingback: The Great Storm – 30 years ago | Brentham Garden Suburb