KINGSTON, Jamaica – A fallen tree on Shortwood Road in St Andrew that blocked vehicles from passing has now been cleared.

The sweetwood tree was uprooted during the passage of Hurricane Beryl on Wednesday.

On Thursday morning, a crew of around half-dozen men equipped with a chainsaw and machetes chopped the tree into pieces and cleared the roadway.

Some passers-by, such as wood designer Mara Harding, took home pieces of the fallen tree to put the wood to good use.

“I just drove by and saw the guys cutting it up so I just took a few pieces,” Harding, founder of MaraMade Designs, told Observer Online. “This is my first sweetwood that I have ever picked up, you don’t see a lot of them.”

Another passer-by was observed taking home a piece of the tree to use as a cutting board.

The work crew was sent to clear the road by Councillor for the Barbican Division, Joy Cotterell, according to one of its members.

It took the crew several hours to complete the task, the man said.