Storm damage and fallen trees in Mackay
Call 000 if anyone is in danger. A fallen power line is live: stay well clear and call 000 or Ergon Energy. For a tree on the house, ring the SES. Don't climb onto a fallen trunk or start cutting into it, because a tree under strain can roll or spring.
Tree removal in Mackay: what's local
Council trees are off limits
Mackay Regional Council says it's illegal to remove trees and vegetation on public land, and people caught removing, pruning or vandalising them will be fined. Council's own arborists do that work.
Ask, and an arborist assesses it
Request pruning or removal of a council tree online. Council says no topping, flat siding or stub cuts will be done, and it won't remove a tree for dropping leaves, minor twigs or branches over a property.
Your tree over council land
If a private tree encroaches over council land, the owner gets a letter giving 28 days to fix it before penalties apply. That's a job for your own arborist, not council's.
Ergon keeps the lines clear
Council says Ergon is responsible for keeping trees clear of power lines, and it treats tall trees with structural defects under power lines as hazardous.
What do Mackay's storms mean for your trees?
Council rates the region's cyclone risk as high and notes some storms have formed in the Coral Sea as late as early July. Severe thunderstorm warnings are common here, even if they rarely become a large-scale disaster.
Wind damage doesn't only come with named cyclones. A tornado linked to Cyclone Joy cut a swathe through Mackay in December 1990, and Cyclone Ului drove winds of 160 kph at Midge Point in 2010.
Either way, the useful work is the same: have big trees near the house assessed before the wet, and deal with split or overweight limbs while the weather's calm. Queensland's cyclone season officially runs from 1 November to 30 April.
Tree removal permits in Mackay
Inside your own boundary it can depend on the lot. Council's planning scheme is the Mackay Region Planning Scheme 2017, at version 5.0 from 15 June 2026, and its MiMAPS mapping shows the planning information for a property.
Council's vegetation factsheet lists poisoning, mowing, pruning, removal and ringbarking as examples of vegetation damage on community and private land, and Queensland adds state rules for protected native plants. Ask council before anything is cut, storm-damaged and dead trees included. Our Queensland permit guide covers the state side.
For a neighbour's tree, council points people to QCAT under Queensland's neighbourhood disputes law. Our neighbours' trees guide walks through the steps.
Who cleans up after a Mackay storm?
Council's recovery advice is plain: SES volunteers attend emergencies, such as trees on houses, and otherwise residents arrange their own private damage clean-up. So the SES is for the tree through the roof, and an arborist is for the gum across the back fence.
Footpath trees that come down are council's to clear. Anything touching wires stays where it is until Ergon has made it safe.
Common tree jobs in Mackay
Pruning and crown reductions before the wet, removing trees that have outgrown small yards, clearing branches back from houses and fences, and storm clean-ups. Council's own warning about poinciana, which can grow downward branches up to four metres long over a few summer months, explains a lot of the pruning calls. Our Mackay stump grinding page covers what's left after a removal.
Hiring an arborist in Mackay
Before you book anyone, work out whose tree it is. Footpath tree: report it to council. Tree in the lines: Ergon's. Your own: get the big ones near the house looked at before the wet, and ask council whether any planning rule covers your lot before anything is cut.