Tree Removal
Full removals of dead, storm-damaged or badly sited trees, including tight backyard access and crane jobs.
Learn more →The season decides the workload
The Australian tropical cyclone season runs from 1 November to 30 April, and Far North Queensland does not need a named system to lose trees. A wet season squall line with sixty or seventy knot gusts over saturated ground will bring down more trees than people expect, because roots that hold fine in dry soil simply pull out of mud. That combination — waterlogged root plates and a big soft crown grown over summer — is why Cairns loses trees that looked healthy the week before.
Cairns has been through the real thing more than once, from Yasi in 2011 to the flooding that came with Jasper in December 2023, and the pattern after every event is the same: far more work than crews, and a queue that has to be triaged.
How a storm job is triaged
First priority is anything that is an immediate danger to people or is making damage worse: a tree on a roof, a limb through a ceiling, a trunk across the only driveway out, a tree hung up above a walkway. Second is access and services — blocked driveways, blocked gates, trees leaning into a boundary. Third is everything else, including fences, sheds and garden clean-up.
The first visit to a serious job is usually about making it safe, not finishing it. That can mean cutting a tree free of a roof and tarping the hole, sectioning a trunk enough to clear a driveway, or taking the load off a leaning tree and leaving the stem standing until the ground dries out enough to work under it. Coming back for the tidy-up is normal and it is the right sequence.
Tension, and why DIY goes wrong
Storm-damaged trees are under load in ways that standing trees are not. A bent stem is a spring. A limb pinned under another limb releases when the wrong cut is made. A half-uprooted tree can stand back up when the weight comes off. A barber-chaired trunk splits upward faster than anyone can move. Every serious tree injury in a storm season involves someone with a chainsaw and a good reason to hurry.
Add wet, unstable ground, an afternoon storm cell on the way, and possible live conductors in the mess, and the case for standing back is straightforward.
Before the season, not after it
The cheapest storm work is the work done in September. Deadwood out, crowns thinned so wind passes through, limbs cleared off the roof and away from the service line, and anything already dead or structurally poor removed while the ground is firm. That is the entire content of the lopping and pruning page, and it is the difference between a tidy yard in February and a claim.
Walk the block before November. Look for fungal brackets at the base, cracks in major forks, lifted soil on one side of the trunk, and dead limbs sitting in the crown. Look at what is under each tree. Then book the work while there is still a diary to book into.
Storm call-outs cover the full service area, from Trinity Beach and the northern beaches through to Edmonton and the cane country. Once the tree is down and cleared, stump grinding finishes the ground off, and the cost guide explains why emergency pricing differs from a booked job.
More services
Explore our other services
Tree Lopping & Pruning
Crown thinning, deadwooding and clearance pruning — sail area cut back before the cyclone season starts.
Learn more →Stump Grinding
Stumps ground below grade so the hole can be topped up and turfed, planted or paved over.
Learn more →Palm Tree Removal
Cocos, coconut and foxtail palms cleaned up, de-nutted or taken out entirely.
Learn more →
FAQs
Frequently asked questions
What should I do before anyone arrives?
Keep everyone well clear, including pets, and assume any wire near the tree is live. Do not try to pull a hung-up limb down or cut anything under tension — storm-damaged wood stores enormous energy and releases it unpredictably. Photograph the damage from a safe distance for your insurer. If a power line is involved, call Ergon Energy before you call anyone else.
Will an emergency call-out cost more?
Usually, yes. After-hours and wet-weather work carries a premium, and a tree under tension on a roof takes longer and needs more people than the same tree standing. What you are paying for is stopping the damage getting worse. Non-urgent clean-up booked for a normal working day afterwards is charged normally.
How long is the wait after a cyclone?
After a widespread event every crew in the region is working through a queue and the triage is brutal — structures, access and services first, fences and gardens later. Expect the first visit to make the site safe rather than finish the job, and expect that visit to take days rather than hours if the event was severe. Trees that are merely leaning may wait a week or more.
Does insurance cover storm tree damage?
That is between you and your insurer, and policies differ sharply on whether removal of a fallen tree is covered when it has not damaged a building. Photograph everything before the tree is cut, keep the invoice, and ring your insurer before authorising a full clean-up. We can provide a written description of the work for a claim but we do not deal with insurers on your behalf.
Free, no-obligation