Fire destroys part of Seine River spirit tree

The spirit tree of the Seine River forest in Winnipeghas been burned.

Woody, the spirit tree, has greeted passersby on the river path near John Bruce Road in St. Vital since it was carved in 2004.

On Tuesday morning,people walking along the path discovered it burning.

"It's a real work of art, pretty special for this area so it's too bad to see it something like that vandalized," said Lou Boisjoli, who happened by the smouldering tree.

He saidone of the two faces carved into it has beenburned beyond recognition. None of the other trees around the popular attraction have been damaged.

Woody is part of thethe Seine River Greenways magical forest, the Bois-des-Esprits, which features a number of carvings.

The three-metre high spirit tree was once a threat to the forest before becoming a guardian. The 23-metre high elmwas stricken with Dutch Elm Disease and slated for removalin 2004, for fear it would cause other tree to become infected by the fungal disease.

The trunk was cut downandtheinfected bark removed, clearing the way for Walter Mirosh and Robert Leclaire of Les Gens de Bois Woodcarving Club to create the dual-faced totem.

Woody and the other carvings have helped the Save Our Seinestewardship groupprotect the areafrom development.

Firefighters managed to put the tree fire out before it spread further, but Boisjoli, who walks by the tree on a regular basis, said the damage is done and it's a blow to the community.

"[I'm] really disappointed, you know, that someone would go through all that work and somebody comes along and destroys it just useless vandalism as far as I'm concerned," he said.

Mirosh said he is devastated by the news, describing Wally as a beacon on the path.

"It was like a lighthouse. Anyone who walked into the forest, he would greet them, Mirosh said, before getting emotional.

I"m sorry, I"m cracking up here."

He and Leclair plan to go see the tree and figure out if thereis anything that can be done to repair the damage.