Emergency Tree Removal in Kiama — Tree Down? Ring Now

Before you call anyone, do these four things

A tree has come down. Stop and work through this in order.

1. Get everyone clear and keep them clear. Away from the trunk, away from the crown, away from anything the tree is leaning on. A tree that has already fallen can still move.
2. Look for wires. If a power line is anywhere in it, stay 8 metres back, assume every conductor is live, and call Endeavour Energy on 131 003. They run the network across the Illawarra and South Coast.
3. Injuries or someone trapped — 000. Nothing else first.
4. Tree through the roof, or a structure that is no longer sound — NSW SES on 132 500.

Then, and only then, call (02) 4214 4543.

Do not climb up for a better look. Do not cut a limb that is pinned under load — a branch trapped against a fence or a gutter is holding stored energy and it will spring when you release it. That is how weekend chainsaw injuries happen.

Why this coast produces so many of these calls

Kiama has almost nothing between it and open water. The Norfolk Island pines along the Blowhole headland, the banksia behind the dunes at Bombo and Jones Beach, the exposed paddock trees out past Rose Valley and Saddleback Mountain — none of them have shelter. A salt-laden southerly comes off the ocean at full strength and hits them square on.

Inland it is a different mechanism. Jamberoo Valley and Foxground get real rainfall off the escarpment, the ground saturates, and a big fig or camphor laurel goes over at the root plate rather than snapping in the trunk.

Neither is theoretical. On 8 October 2025 gusts of 67km/h through Kiama took out power to around 980 Gerringong properties and dropped a tree across the rail line, cancelling trains between Kiama and Bomaderry both ways (Illawarra Mercury). An earlier Illawarra event clocked 93km/h at Kiama.

What counts as an emergency, and what does not

Ring straight away:

• A tree or major limb on a house, garage, shed or car.
• A trunk that has split, or a lean that has visibly changed.
• Soil cracked or heaving on one side of the base — the root plate is lifting.
• A tree hung up in another tree, or resting on a fence, gutter or power service.
• A blocked driveway or access with someone inside who needs to get out.
• Anything overhanging a bedroom that you no longer trust.

Can safely wait for a normal booking:

• Debris and small limbs across the lawn with nothing structural involved. That is storm damage clean-up.
• A tree that is too big or too close but is stable — a planned removal or a crown reduction.
• Dead fronds hanging in a palm above a path. Urgent-ish, not an emergency. See palm removal.

If you are not sure which list you are on, ring and describe it. That call costs nothing.

What happens after you call

Tell us three things. What has come down, what it is sitting on, and whether a truck can get near it. Height and rough trunk thickness help. So does "there are wires involved" — say that first if it is true.

Urgent jobs are prioritised. A tree on a roof goes ahead of a hedge trim, every time. After a widespread blow the whole LGA calls at once, so we triage honestly rather than promising a time we cannot hold. What we can tell you is that the crews are already on this coast — Minnamurra to Gerroa is a short drive, not a trip down the highway.

Open seven days, 6am to 7pm. Every day, including weekends.

On site, the job runs in stages. Make safe first — take the load off the structure, stabilise anything hanging. Then the controlled dismantle: sections rigged and lowered rather than dropped, because the thing underneath is usually a roof, a car or a pool. Then cut-up and clear-out.

Photograph everything before it is touched, if you can do it safely. Insurers ask, and the arborist evidence Council may want after an emergency removal is far easier to assemble when you have images from the night.

The Council side of an emergency

Kiama Council manages tree work on private land under the Kiama Development Control Plan 2020, Chapter 2, Topic 2.4 — Tree Preservation and Vegetation Management, and most established trees need a Tree Management Application before anything is cut.

Emergencies are handled differently. Council's guidance indicates that where a tree is an immediate or imminent danger, a permit is not required beforehand — but you need evidence from an arborist before work starts, and it must be sent to Council as soon as possible afterwards.

Read that carefully. It is not a shortcut around a normal removal, and using it that way is a risk you carry. If the tree is stable, apply properly.

Street and verge trees are Council-managed public land. Report a fallen or dangerous street tree to Kiama Council rather than arranging your own crew.

Confirm anything unclear with Kiama Council on 02 4232 0444. Sources: Kiama Council — Tree Management application form and ABLIS — Approval to Manage Trees or Vegetation, Kiama.

Insurance, honestly

We ask every crew we refer work to for current public liability cover. Ask to see the certificate before work begins — a straight operator hands it over without being chased, and on emergency work over a damaged roof it matters more than usual.

Where we come from

The whole LGA: Minnamurra, Kiama Downs, Bombo, Kiama, Kiama Heights, Werri Beach, Gerringong, Gerroa, Jamberoo, Saddleback Mountain, Foxground and Rose Valley. The Suburbs page has the detail, and the home page covers everything else we handle.

Ring it in now

If a tree is down, do not sit on it overnight hoping it holds. Say "tree down" the moment we pick up and it goes to the front of the queue.

Call (02) 4214 4543 — seven days, 6am to 7pm.