The Nets of Life... err Nets around the Tree of Life

[KingEric]

Not so long ago a piece of the tree of life fell off... if the Tree of Life was a real tree, this wouldn't be such an issue, but since this tree is made out of steel and concrete this is a BIG issue!

So Disney sprung into action! And instead of fixing the tree, they put nets... lots of nets around the base of this incredible piece of art.

They have walled off large sections of the paths around the Tree of Life where they did not build nets. But hey at least you are safe... right?


Simply Stunning... it is an amazing piece of art.




Fancy art shot



All is not well when you look at the base.




















Ok this image is an important one. Here you will notice how the original concrete is no longer on the bend in the branch, instead it has been smoothed over, and cheaply painted. This is what is troubling with how Disney is "repairing" the tree of life. Simple band-aids.


Another shot of the bandaid






This is fake mold. It was really hard due to the amazing original design to decipher what was real mold and corrosion and what is fake.




The green walls means no more path, because there are no nets there.


No path for you!



So what should Disney do about all of this?

[swampymarsh]

I assume it's not obvious to most guests, but I find it disappointing. Will the treehouses in Adventurland be next?

[PetiteMortKvsh]

Thanks for the great report and photos. That is sad to hear. It is such a brilliant piece of art to be neglected and obstructed. Aren't they doing the same thing with the nets in other areas where real tree's are, like Splash?

[MickeyM]

Thanks for the great report and photos. That is sad to hear. It is such a brilliant piece of art to be neglected and obstructed. Aren't they doing the same thing with the nets in other areas where real tree's are, like Splash?

Splash's nets were put up because a piece of the rockwork nearly fell on guests. Yes, Splash is falling apart too.

[KingEric]

It will be interesting to see if the nets are gone when Splash reopens.

[swampymarsh]

It will be interesting to see if the nets are gone when Splash reopens.

I'm wondering if new rockwork like the Caddilac Range and the Little Mermaid queue will develop this same problem. Perhaps something wrong with the mix used for a while.

[Pizzapants]

Ugh. This is awful. Why... What the... I hate this. I'd be fine with this if they did it while they fixed the problem, but we all know how permanent WDW's "temporary" fixes become.

[Witches of Morva]

ORDDU: It sounds like the Yeti problem all over again--only with a different attration this time around. A witch would think it would be much easier to repair the Tree of Life, though. Thank you for you informative post, KingEric, dear. We always look forward to your input.

[MickeyM]

Just to give everyone a timeframe as to how long the Tree has been like this... the nets were first installed in June of last year. I believe the branch accident occurred in April or May.

[KingEric]

Just to give everyone a timeframe as to how long the Tree has been like this... the nets were first installed in June of last year. I believe the branch accident occurred in April or May.

Thank you for the reminder on the timeline.

[ColonelWalrus]

Just out of curiosity, would those nets really protect someone from a chunk of falling concrete.

[KingEric]

Just out of curiosity, would those nets really protect someone from a chunk of falling concrete.

No they wouldn't. The nets are attached to the wood using a nail gun. If a large piece of concrete did fall it would hurt or kill you, however Disney would not be "negligent" in a lawsuit.

[Pizzapants]

Just out of curiosity, would those nets really protect someone from a chunk of falling concrete.

The fact that this even has to be asked is sad. Not on your part. On Disney's part.

[ColonelWalrus]

No they wouldn't. The nets are attached to the wood using a nail gun. If a large piece of concrete did fall it would hurt or kill you, however Disney would not be "negligent" in a lawsuit.

I didn't notice that, but that has me more concerned. The "safety net" itself is part of the facade as well I guess.

I mean if the net was strong and secured maybe it could prevent injury, but that net looks really thin.

[Bruce Bergman]

No they wouldn't. The nets are attached to the wood using a nail gun. If a large piece of concrete did fall it would hurt or kill you, however Disney would not be "negligent" in a lawsuit.

I have to put my Construction hat on and agree - that looks like decorative cargo netting made of maybe 1/8" nylon rope, and if the tree sheds a 200# - 500# chunk of stucco and it lands flat and level, it might stop it before it hurts someone. But anything bigger in the 1,000# or higher range and it's going right through - Especially if it comes down Pointy end first and only hits a few strands at a time - it'll point-load one little spot on the net and open it right up like scissors...

If Disney thinks that netting will relieve them of all liability, they are sorely mistaken - There are standards in place for pedestrian protection on a construction site, and there are companies that rent out those special barricades to contractors.

The ones I've seen (Safe-T-Walk) start with extra-heavy steel Scaffolding Risers and extra-heavy steel trusswork cross beams, then they use 4X4 lumber cribbing as deck support, topped with at least two overlapping layers of 3/4" Plywood nailed in place. That /will/ stop a 1,000# chunk of stucco coming down pointy end first - Might punch a hole in the plywood slowing it down, but it isn't going to fail catastrophically.

--<< Bruce >>--