OMAHA, Nebraska (WOWT) – North Omaha resident Jaclene Clinkenbeard told 6 News her front yard was littered with splintered wood after last Wednesday’s storm.
“After the storm, there were so many that you can’t really tell which tree they all came from,” Clinkenbeard said.
She said she appreciated the city’s pickup service because she doesn’t have the ability to take the items to a drop-off point herself.
“It would just have to stay there until it breaks because I don’t have a chainsaw, you know?”
On Thursday, workers from the Omaha Public Works Department were out in areas including theirs, South Omaha, Benson and around Boys Town, collecting broken branches and twigs and taking them to various locations where Omaha Parks and Recreation will process them into wood chips.
“We have people working 12 hours a day, seven days a week,” said Deputy Director Jim Theiler. “They’ll be doing that for a couple more weeks, so our teams are working hard. I think we’ve accomplished a lot.”
Juan Longoria, who lives south of 46th and Center streets, said he is disabled. He told 6 News that taking his debris to a landfill himself would have been slower.
“I would probably have to put all the branches, as many as I could, in my little garbage can down there, tie them to the roof of my car and take them to a landfill or something,” Longoria said. “That wouldn’t be a really efficient process.”
He also said that the city actually exceeded his expectations.
“It’s also really nice to see the cleanup going so quickly, especially coming from Texas. Usually things don’t get done until a month or two after the incident.”
However, Clinkenbeard said she was concerned about two abandoned lots next to her home where tree debris still lies after city workers searched her street.
“What do you do with all these abandoned properties where trees have fallen down?” she said.
6 News asked Theiler, who said the owner of these properties was responsible.
City officials have said the cleanup could take two to three weeks across the city. But they are sending inspectors through neighborhoods and after their work Thursday and Friday, they may have a better estimate of how long the work might take.
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