A man has said he is “dismayed” after an apple blossom tree on his road was chopped down for health and safety reasons.

One of the established trees in West Road, Caister, was damaged after it was hit by a bin lorry.

Following an assessment by a borough council contractor, the tree was cut down in order to protect the public, leaving just a stump.

Resident Bob Sewell said he was almost lost for words to describe how he felt.

“Disgusted, appalled, shocked, dismayed. These are just the words I can use, how I feel is a lot worse.”

Mr Sewell said he had been contacting the borough council for three years to get the low-hanging branches of the trees pruned in case a vehicle hit them.

He added: “My question to the person who gave the order to cut down such a lovely tree is ‘why?’

“How can you hold that power in your hands to decide the fate of one of our trees?”

In the spring, the trees blossom with a bright pink flower for around a fortnight before they shed.

A spokesman for the borough council said: “We are aware that a bin lorry had struck an apple tree in Caister and the arboricultural team of GYB Services team was dispatched to make an assessment of the tree.

“The result of the impact was that the apple tree on the road verge had split down the length of the stem.

“This was due to the tree having an included union at the top of the stem which has created a weak structural point.

“Regrettably the damaged caused was too severe to be managed and the tree was felled completely due to safety reasons.

“We will be exploring with Norfolk County Council, which owns the highway verges, options to replace the tree.”