In what was surely the biggest police action in the East Village today, 6 cars of New York's Finest surrounded a tree on 1st Avenue and 6th Street that hadn't surrendered to the forces of Irene and posed a threat to local citizens.

Fearing resistance, the police took no chances and used rope and chainsaw to take down the tree, and then rapidly proceeded to turn it into kindling.

Some neighborhood residents expressed surprise that the upstanding member of the community had gone bad and questioned the police's brutal tactics, calling for the tree to be let go.