Weather causes concerns during Helene recovery in Augusta
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - As temperatures drop, debris cleanup from Helene remains a concern for those who still are waiting for their homes to be fixed.
We took a look at some neighborhoods still struggling to recover nearly two months after the storm.
We checked on several neighborhoods throughout Richmond County. On Fairfield Drive, debris was stacked up taller than the average person, causing residents to be concerned for the welfare of the neighborhood.
“It looks the same, and I’m at peace with it, but most of my neighbors are not,” said Ed Rice, who lives on Fairfield Drive
Rice says nearly two months and counting, and he sees the same issues towering over his neighborhood.
‘Everybody’s helping everybody’: Helene cleanup goes on in CSRA
Before Hurricane Helene, the 2014 ice storm was one of the worst recent disasters our area faced. To put Helene into perspective, so far, 928,000 cubic yards of debris have been picked up.
“I could not exit Fairfield Drive for quite a few weeks. The piles of logs were so high you could not see around to Walton Way,” said Rice.
Others say they’re concerned about temperature and weather getting worse as work to get repairs done on homes are looking into the new year.
Jennifer Ellis, who lives on West Hills, said: “We need an entirely new roof, and it’s just hard to even get people to come out and even look at the roof. You can’t even see my front yard, and it’s getting to be to where there’s, you know, squirrels and all kinds of stuff living in there as well.”
All that piled with an unclear plan for cleanup is causing frustrations, especially in communities outside of major roads.
“It would be better for us to know, like, what the city’s plans are, as far as strategically, how they’re what neighborhoods are next, how they’re devising it,” said Ellis.
Will South Carolina start seeing more buried power lines after Helene?
Many in South Carolina are wondering whether the devastation from Hurricane Helene will lead to more above-ground power lines being buried.
Rice said: “The neighbors were very distressed that we did not see the city or the county or the state for weeks on end. I don’t know what the current status is, but, you know, people were disappointed.”
Crews have collected more than a million cubic yards of debris in Richmond County.
Residents say they see the progress. But as things are looking to get colder, they want a better picture of what’s to come.
“I also think there’s a lot of work to be done, and that communication would be better from the city as well,” said Ellis.
It’s still a tall task ahead to get everything cleaned up.
Now that the days are shorter, residents are extra concerned about safety for areas with stockpiled debris and limited streetlights.
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