The widow of a Queenstown farmer killed this month when a Lombardy poplar crushed his vehicle in Lower Shotover Rd said she was shell-shocked by the Queenstown Lakes District Council's decision not to fell the 66 trees.
Cindy Liggett said she was "totally in shock" at the decision to give the trees a stay of execution until after further investigation.
"How many more innocent lives have to be lost, needlessly, due to their [the council's] arrogance?"
We have lost a husband, father and grandfather due to the council's lack of care and attention to those trees.
"Our lives are shattered and this is insane. [It] just adds to our misery."
Mrs Liggett said she had seen the report from Rod Slater, of Asplundh, which suggested two options.
The first "extreme" option was to close the road indefinitely to the public and the second was to remove all the trees.
His report "says it all", Mrs Liggett said.
The area was used daily by cyclists, pedestrians, tourists and locals.
"So what are they to do now? Take the gamble, or do what we do now and go the long way?"Since her husband died, she had implored visitors not to drive past the trees, but travel down Speargrass Flat Rd, along Domain Rd and rejoin Lower Shotover Rd to connect to State Highway 6.
The council had checked trees in Speargrass Flat Rd about two years ago and removed any trees deemed unsafe.
However, she still had concerns about trees further along Lower Shotover Rd.
"You get down the other end of Lower Shotover and you've got massive trees hanging over the road.
"You get a gust of wind and there are branches everywhere.
"It doesn't need to be a freak gust of wind.
"If we owned those trees, we would be made to remove them.
"I'm just shell-shocked."
