Many could miss last chance for debris pickup in Columbia County
EVANS, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Nearly five months after Hurricane Helene, Columbia County is now starting its final of debris pickup along the roads.
And with many people still waiting on their debris to be picked up, county leaders say people are putting non-storm debris on their piles.
That’s a problem, because crews are paying attention to those piles, and if they determine you’ve put something in a pile that’s not allowed, they won’t pick it up.
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All that’s allowed is Helene-related vegetation debris from improved property. And if you try to slip in something that’s not from Helene, they’ll know, and they’ll mark it with a big orange X.
“We finished up our first of debris removal in Columbia County. Our partners at Ceres and DebrisTech have touched every street in Columbia County at least one time,” County Manager Scott Johnson said. “That’s not to say that we hadn’t been on the street multiple times. Maybe we picked up multiple residences. Maybe every residence did not get touched in the first . But we have been on every street in Columbia County as of last Friday.”
BY THE NUMBERS
Columbia County: A look at debris cleanup
- One debris monitoring company
- One disaster recovery contractor
- Nine disaster recovery subcontractors
- 17 debris management sites countywide; 10 are currently active
- Over 200 hauling units in the county hauling debris and mulch
- More than 45 pieces of large heavy equipment like excavators, bulldozers and loaders
- More than 92 pieces of small equipment
- More than 500 disaster recovery personnel boots on the ground
The piles marked with X’s are the ones that don’t qualify for removal.
“We are focusing on storm debris from the hurricane,” Johnson said. “Anything above and beyond that is going to be marked. And if it’s marked with an orange X or it has orange tape around it, the county is not going to be able to pick that up. It will remain there. It’s going to be the responsibility of the homeowner, property owner.”
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With the Federal Emergency Management Agency last week denying local governments an extension of the 100% reimbursement period for debris cleanup, time is of the essence as crews shift to the second .
“We’re going to go in and we’re going to try to remove everything. Stumps, large logs, everything on a road,” Johnson said.
If you have any leftover hurricane debris, this is your last chance to put it out.
“We’re going to clean your street up. Once that street is clean, and we’ve documented that, we’re not coming back to that street,” he said.
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To avoid the X, make sure your debris is storm debris only – not yard trash, new green vegetation or fencing.
And leaders say if you want it gone, fix it now because anything that is put out after the second , the county will not be responsible for.
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