The large number of dead, dying or damaged trees in Seymour city parks has led to the decision to remove many of them to prevent someone from being injured by a falling limb.

Parks director Bob Tabeling said tree removal will take place during Jackson County United Way’s annual Day of Caring event Tuesday if weather allows.

During Day of Caring, hundreds of volunteers come together to complete projects throughout the county to benefit the community.

Barry’s Tree Service of Seymour will cut the trees down, and volunteers will help with picking up limbs and branches.

Trees marked for removal are ones that have been dead for years, Tabeling said.

“Some have suffered lightning strikes, and we’ve got a couple of them in each park that has the emerald ash borer,” he said.

Emerald ash borers are an invasive insect that feed on and destroy ash trees.

“These ash trees need to be taken down,” Tabeling said.

He said he felt it was important to let people know why the trees are being removed.

“Over at Shields Park, right between the pool and the big diamond, this past summer, we had a limb as big as this desk fall out of the tree,” he said. “You just never know when that’s going to happen and which windstorm is going to do it.”

Most of the removals will take place at Shields and Gaiser parks.

After the trees are cut down and all of the debris is cleared, Barry’s Tree Service will return at a later date to remove the stumps, Tabeling said.

The city already has started planting some new trees at Freeman Field Sports Complex and at Shields Park.

“The plan is to go back and put some trees back in,” he said. “We’ve got some saplings that are going to be planted by the Girl Scouts in some designated areas.”