What’s the status of debris cleanup in Richmond, Columbia counties?
- Explaining FEMA: What the agency can and can’t do for Helene victims
- Fact vs. fiction: A look at the false information around Hurricane Helene
- FEMA aid: Local renters can apply for assistance after Hurricane Helene
- Applying for aid: Assistance won’t affect other benefits, agency says
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Friday marks four weeks since Helene hit the CSRA, and debris cleanup is still well underway.
There is so much more debris to collect, and it looks like it’s going to take some time and a lot of patience.
Piles of debris have become all too familiar, but the CSRA is still working to make sure it all gets cleared up.
Everyone wants to know what’s the status of debris collection.
Augusta Commissioner Sean Frantom says as of Thursday, they have picked up more than 460,000 cubic yards of debris.
The city’s focus is on the trees and they’re really urging you to not mix it with any other debris.
They cannot pick it up if you mix roofing or any other trash.
‘We are going to continue to remain here,’ FEMA chief says in Augusta
The director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency came to Augusta on Wednesday to give an update on the response to Hurricane Helene.
Frantom says if there are telecommunications lines entangled in a debris pile, it cannot be picked up. So, right now they are working on a list of these areas to get them cleared out.
He also says on either Friday or Saturday, they will open up another debris management site at Hyde Park to take some pressure off of Fort Eisenhower.
Crews are still working on the heavy areas right now, like Walton Way and Wheeler Road.
“In the 17 days since the contract, we got like 450,000 cubic yards in that. That’s more than half of what we did in the ice storm,” said Steve Cassell with ISM Engineering.
With about 86 haul units running in Richmond County, crews are bringing debris to sites across the county like Lake Olmstead Stadium and Eisenhower Park.
“We got three or four like grinders out there that’s grinding up the debris. And so, we’re starting to haul those out and just take them to the landfill where they can be reused or trying to create topsoil out and not bury it,” said Cassell.
The city is working with a 90-day time frame to clear all of this to be eligible for full FEMA reimbursement.
Everything you need to know about applying for FEMA aid
This is the first time people around here have had to deal with FEMA, and it can be confusing. If you were unable to work after the hurricane, you may wonder what your next step is regarding unemployment assistance.
But with the amount of debris there is, that may not happen.
Columbia County is in a similar situation.
Officials say they will pick up debris for as long as it takes.
They are urging people to only put vegetative debris to the side of the road.
Right now, they have 74 units out working to pick up the debris.
“We’ve picked up about 450,000 cubic yards. And to put that in perspective, if you take a football field, end zone to end zone, sideline to sideline, 210 feet thick is how much debris we’ve picked up since we’ve started,” said Columbia County Deputy Director of Engineering Kyle Baxley.
County officials say for them to pick up the debris, you have to put it on the side of the road.
Copyright 2024 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
