AN "ICONIC" horse chestnut tree in Romsey had to be felled after it was hit by a lorry.

One of the tree's branches had fallen down onto Station Road, almost hitting parked cars and blocking traffic on Wednesday August 14. This prompted concerns among residents that the remaining boughs were a danger to pedestrians.

Before the tree was felled, Romsey resident Ken Gibson said: "You don't want any of those boughs falling down: it would flatten a person or even a car.

READ MORE: Romsey chestnut tree near library could be felled soon

The chestnut tree before and after the incident (Image: Ken Gibson)

According to locals, the tree has been there by Romsey Library on Station Road for at least four decades.

"The tree's been there as long as I can remember but every year it gets infected on its leaves. I went down to the library the other day and I turned to my left and 'hey ho' the tree had disappeared."

A spokesperson for Hampshire County Council said: “The horse-chestnut tree was struck by a lorry which caused significant damage to the main structure of the tree. Following close examination by one of our tree inspectors, it was decided that the best course of action was to remove the tree, as regrettably, if left, the remaining part would become unstable in due course. This work has now been completed.” 

After the mishap with the lorry, the tree was heavily pruned a few days before it was felled completely.

Now all that remains of the decades-old horse chestnut is a solitary stump.