.::z. 8/8.

From: Mohamad Zulkifli Bin Yahya
Sent: Friday, October 20, 2006 10:25 AM
To: xxx
Cc: xxx; xxx
Subject: Damage to motorcycle due to fallen branches

Dear Mr xxx,
I am the owner of motorcycle FX2212U. I am currently a Systems Analyst with ITU, Medicine, and my office is situated at MD11, Clinical Research Centre. I park my motorcyle at Car Park 9, at the motorcycle lots in front of block MD9, where there are a number of big trees in between the lots and MD9.

On 19th Oct 2006, I left my office and proceeded to the carpark, and to my shock, saw that a few large tree branches had fallen onto my bike. Please see attached photos.



Upon inspection, I noticed that
1) The petrol tank was badly dented
2) The seat cover was torn



When I looked up at the tree right above the motorcycle lots, I noticed a few broken branches.



I left my motorcycle at that lot at 2:10pm, and discovered the condition it is in above at 6:05pm. The tree branches must have fallen during this period. There were neither rain nor strong winds during those 4 hours. The branches must have fallen naturally due to reasons you, as person(s) in charge of horticulture and grounds, would be able to know.

The biggest irony is that, less than 24 hours ago, on the night of 18th Oct 2006, I sent my bike to the workshop to have the seat cover replaced. And now it is torn. Imagine the heartache.

I understand that the University has placed a sign outside the carpark that states it will not be responsible for any damage to any vehicles parked in the car park due to any cause whatsoever. However, I am still deeply disappointed and I have to raise the following questions:

1) How often does OED monitor the trees in NUS for decay or termites?
2) How often does OED prune the trees and carry out maintenance works?
3) Does OED follow any standards in the proper maintenance of trees, e.g, standards set by Nparks?
4) Have any other vehicles been damaged before while parked in NUS car parks, due to fallen branches?

I would like a reply asap before deciding on further action. I shudder to think what will happen if the branches fell while I was still sitting on my bike. The impact must have been great to have caused a dent on the hard petrol tank. Imagine also if a student was walking past the lots and got badly injured due to the falling of the branches. Would OED still "not accept responsibilty.. due to any cause whatsoever?"

Best Regards
Zulkifli