9am Monday update - the tree has now been cleared and the lane is reopened to traffic

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IT was lucky no one was walking or driving under this tree when it crashed across a rural lane on the outskirts of Monmouth this afternoon (Sunday, February 18).

The giant tree fell some time between 1.30 and 2..30pm in Manson Lane, completely blocking the single track lane, about half a mile off the main Hereford Road out of the town, and bringing down the BT phone line to residents along the two-mile long road.

It’s lucky no one was on the road - a popular walking route at weekends - at the time it fell, including your Beacon correspondent who drove past the site shortly after 1pm before it came down.

The lane has seen periods of heavy traffic in the last nine days, when traffic congestion on the A466 twisty and narrow Buckholt stretch running parallel between Monmouth and Welsh Newton has become congested, owing to rerouted traffic from a landslip on the A40 dual carriageway near Ganarew.