Huge tree pieces removed from street

Wesley Chapel, Fl. - With the largest pieces of oak tree already hauled off to a county landfill, workers with Bento's Tree Service finished scraping mulch off Lawrence Avenue Thursday afternoon.

The owner of the tree service didn't want to talk on camera, but says he volunteered to clean up this mess for free, after Pasco County asked him to help.

County Commissioner Pat Mulieri says the company responsible for the illegal dumping was supposed to clear this street Thursday morning but did not. So the county stepped in to clear the hazard.

Homeowners, glad to see the road hazard gone, are still puzzled by the whole thing.

"It's just bizarre how it happened, how the stuff was dropped off, supposedly the owner was found and the owner just didn't do anything and the county had to step in and hire another company that offered to do it for free, which was a great thing and I'm glad it's resolved," said homeowner Andre Cunningham.

What is not resolved, is who dumped huge pieces of tree trunk and limbs on Lawrence Avenue late Tuesday night.

The Pasco Sheriff's office is not yet releasing the name of the company responsible, saying the matter is still under investigation.

At first Pasco County was not going to help remove the tree because this is a private road. So homeowners called 10 News for help.

"A big relief now that it's gone," said Cunningham.

Another neighbor saw the tree dumping Tuesday night and called sheriff's deputies with the license plate number on the truck.

A Pasco County Sheriff's spokesman says illegal dumping happens frequently, but not usually something so large in the middle of a residential street.