JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARBULLETIN.COM Debbie Engle, mother of Julia Engle, recounted what happened on the night a tree crashed into Julia's room during a press conference yesterday as Engle's younger daughter Christina, 10, and attorney Rick Fried listened. Two posters made by Julia's friends and classmates showing their support were displayed.

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Brain swelling decreases
in 12-year-old girl
hit by pine tree

A Manoa woman says the swelling in her 12-year-old daughter's brain has gone down but she remains in a coma since a large pine tree struck her on the head March 15.

GIFTS FOR JULIA Children who want to give Julia Engle stuffed animals, cards, letters or drawings can send them care of her attorney, Rick Fried, at 841 Bishop St., Suite 600, Honolulu 96813.

Julia Engle started to breathe on her own Saturday afternoon, "so that's definitely a positive thing, and also the monitor that tracks the pressure in her brain has been removed," said Debbie Engle, Julia's mother, at a news conference yesterday.

Julia still has a machine that kicks in if she does not take a breath, Engle said. Julia has pneumonia and has yet to regain consciousness, she added.

A 70- to 75-foot Norfolk Island pine tree crashed through her Manoa home on Beckwith Street and struck Julia as she slept.

Among the decorations on the walls of Julia's room at the Queen's Medical Center are a bright yellow banner from Julia's cheerleading squad at Punahou School and a colorful poster from her halau, Hula Hui O Kupuna Hala.

Engle said that children who would like to send her daughter drawings, stuffed animals or cards could send it to the office of her attorney, Rick Fried.

"Hopefully, when she wakes up, she'll see such beautiful, loving letters," Engle said.

Engle recalled the morning she found her daughter unresponsive when the tree cut through the girl's bedroom.

The night before, the family had celebrated Engle's birthday. At 5 a.m., Engle said, she and her 10-year-old daughter Christina heard a loud crash and then her car alarm.

She discovered a huge pine tree leaning against her house when she checked the garage. "And it dawned on me why my daughter Julia didn't say anything. It was near her room. I thought, 'Oh my God,'" she said.

She ran up the stairs to her daughter's bedroom and fumbled through her blankets, frantically trying to find Julia.

"And I just held her," Engle said. She yelled for help through the large hole in the wall and neighbors called 911.

"I am truly hopeful," she said. "She definitely has youth on her side. Children are resilient. We certainly hope for the best."

Engle and Christina are now staying at her mother's home nearby.

"Personally, the trees are so big that my daughter and I are fearful for our lives, because these trees are so huge. So we would feel safer if they could be a lot less tall. It's really important to have safe trees in your area," Engle said.

At the news conference, Fried read portions of the contract Nilasoni Landscape Inc. has with the city to maintain trees in Manoa, including 16 pine trees on Beckwith Street.

The contract says the company's qualified arborist "shall be responsible for examining trees for disease, decay in the trunk, presence of termites, dead or dying trees, and it should be reported immediately to the officer in charge."

Fried said a tree expert he recently hired to inspect the tree showed signs of root compaction. "There was soil compacted on top, which lets roots rot and permits the termite entryway to the tree, which (termite damage) went up to the height of 30 feet," he said.

Officials at Nilasoni Landscape would not comment. The company's arborist, David Nelson, could not be reached for comment.

The city hired consultant Steve Nimz of The Tree People to inspect the fallen tree and the other trees on Beckwith Street. According to city spokesman Bill Brennan, Nimz examined parts of the fallen tree Monday and the other pine trees along the street yesterday.

"The investigation is still ongoing," Brennan said.