CHARLESTON, SC (WCSC) – Nearly 12 hours after Tropical Storm Debby made landfall in Charleston County for the second time Thursday, crews are spending the day assessing the damage and repairing what they can.
The City of Charleston’s Urban Forestry Department and Parks and Recreation Department are assembling teams to respond to reports of damage from across the city.
Jason Kronsbery, facilities and capital projects department manager, says the city uses a reporting system that allows them to monitor and update the status of each damage report, from “received” to “in progress” to “completed.” They can use the same system to make notes about where debris needs to be picked up after an assessment and cleanup team arrives at a site.
“Before the storm gets here, all the teams are getting their equipment ready, we’re fueling all our trucks so we’re ready once the storm passes. So today the city is actually closed, but as central staff, all of our parks department employees are to report right after the storm, and we’re all pitching in to clean up the city and reopen it to residents and visitors,” Kronsberg says.
At a West Ashley park, a crew of about 10 people spent two hours repairing a fallen tree. City Forestry Director Edward Wilkerson supervised and assisted in removing and felling the sweet gum tree.
“Our average crew is three people. We try to spread ourselves out as much as possible with as much talent as possible to get as many things done as possible. The bigger the tree, the more people we use for safety and efficiency reasons,” Wilkerson says.
Kronsberg says there were a few reports coming in from Debby after Tuesday and more after the persistent rain and wind on Thursday. The reports from people so far are mostly on private property, so crews are encountering more damage as they respond and he expects a few more reports to come in over the weekend.
“In this case, a very wet situation, an older tree with a poor root system, and things like this can happen,” says Kronsberg.
He and Wilkerson agree that the city was well prepared and fortunately wasn’t hit too hard by Debby. They’re glad they have to deal with downed trees, most of which fell in wooded areas or away from homes.
“We usually start at 7 a.m., and if there is a heavy storm we do 12-hour shifts. Today we will probably have a 7- to 10-hour day, with ground crew and forestry workers sharing the load,” says Kronsberg.
The city offers an online damage reporting portal and an information flyer about its work.
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