THERE was no way for a Alexandria teacher to avoid being struck by a tree he was helping cut down in Rhu, an inquiry has concluded.

Christopher Moses, 37, was a maths teacher at Vale of Leven Academy, but was working as a tree surgeon in Rhu when the accident happened almost three years ago.

A fatal accident inquiry (FAI) was held at Dumbarton Sheriff Court in July before Sheriff John Hamilton - whose determination was published on December 23.

The tragedy, on January 12, 2020, was caused by the "upper section of the tree becoming separated from the rest of the tree, falling in the opposite direction than was intended and striking Mr Moses causing him to sustain fatal head injuries".

Sheriff Hamilton made "no finding" for any precautions which could have been taken that could have avoided the death.

He also found no defects in the system of working undertaken by Mr Moses and his colleagues, and also made no findings of other relevant facts.

He made no recommendations resulting from the inquiry.

The sheriff wrote: "The upper section was approximately 30 feet in length and a considerable weight. Christopher Moses would have had no opportunity to avoid it being struck by it when it became detached as it did.

"Although he was wearing a helmet and appropriate protective equipment, the weight of the trunk and the force with which it struck him means that it would have been unlikely to offer much protection."

The FAI was required by law because Mr Moses died in the course of his work.

A former Lieutenant Colonel in the Royal Marines, Mr Moses retrained as a teacher as well as a tree surgeon, and had a number of certifications.

He was working at a property on Artarman Road, Rhu, on January 12, 2020 with a 30-metre-tall tree. It was between 2.5 and 3.5 metres wide and had been assessed as being an "imminent and serious hazard to life or property".

Mr Moses, who had served in Afghanistan and was referred to by teaching colleagues as "cheerful and passionate", was living in Cardross at the time he agreed to take town the tree, along with two colleagues.

They had successfully taken down much of the lime tree except for a large limb of about 30 feet which was growing in the opposite direction from where they wanted it to fall.

Mr Moses climbed the tree around 3.30pm that afternoon and had all the appropriate safety equipment. His colleagues were on the grown about 50 feet away holding the guide rope to control the descent.

In the July hearing, which was attended  Mr Moses' family in attendance, the court heard how he made a cut into the trunk on the side away from the road. It was a wedge cut, followed by a smaller one on the opposite side to create a hinge.

The hinge ended up breaking and the trunk twisted and fell backwards towards Mr Moses.

Emergency crews arrived soon after by Mr Moses was pronounced dead at 4.07pm.

Sheriff Hamilton wrote that there was no way to know what went wrong that day given the nature of trees.

He said: "The reason that the upper section of the tree fell in the opposite direction than was intended is uncertain and impossible to categorically determine.

"It is axiomatic that trees are dynamic and unpredictable in their structure and behaviour under stress.

"There may be a number of explanations, for example the sound of a 'crack' immediately before the limb of the tree fell in the wrong direction may suggest the tree’s internal structure was unstable and unpredictable due to rot.

"Alternatively it could be that Christopher Moses miscalculated the depth of the 'back' cut into the trunk.

"He may have unintentionally cut through, or weakened, the 'hinge' he had made in the trunk, which would have separated the upper section of the trunk from the lower part, or at least reduced it to the extent that it was unable to remain supported."

Speaking after Mr Moses died, his sister, Amy Moses, said: “He was an amazing brother. He was a positive force for life, a force for good and lived several life times in his 37 years.

“He was my younger brother but in many ways he was older, he was wise and someone I went to for advice.”

His father Rob added: “Chris was never afraid of hard work. He worked hard in everything he did. A dad couldn’t be more proud of his son.

“He believed in everybody and was always there for others.

“He believed everyone was capable of everything, everyone was capable of maths – and everyone was capable of anything they put their mind to. He wanted people to believe in themselves, he wanted everyone to succeed.”

The FAI repeatedly started the date of the incident and death was in 2019 when it was 2020. The full decision is published at scotcourts.gov.uk.