Piles of mulch stretching the length of a football field are left in Hamden – the remnants of hundreds upon hundreds of trees ripped from their roots when a tornado rolled through last month.
Michael Tattar made his fourth trip to the debris drop-off station at the Department of Public Works in Hamden Tuesday. He said it won’t be his last.
“It’s going to be weeks if not even months for some stuff to get done because you’re finding more and more things that are a problem,” said Michael Tattar, a longtime resident of Hamden.
On May 15, an EF1 tornado with estimated peak winds of 110 mph moved along a 9½-mile path between Beacon Falls and Hamden, according to the National Weather Service.
The progress in the hard hit town has been slow and steady with crews just moving to 12-hour days after working around the clock for weeks.
“We’ve pretty much been in most areas at least once,” said Craig Cesare, the director of the Department of Public Works. “Folks as you can imagine are continuously bringing more debris out to the curbs as they’re reaching their backyards. There has just been an overwhelming amount of debris put out.”
Cesare said all of the debris will be turned into piles and piles of mulch that have to be processed before they can be used. He said it may contain insects or plant diseases, such as termites or poison ivy, so they are urging people not to take it.
Local
“Typically when you buy mulch it has been treated and cleaned and filtered, so this is raw mulch,” explained Cesare. “It has anything and everything inside of it, so you need to be mindful of what you’re handling.”
Meanwhile, neighbors told NBC Connecticut they appreciate all the town is doing to make the clean up a little easier.
“It has been a tremendous response, and I think for the damage that’s been done I’m kind of well pleased with what they’ve done so far, said Hamden resident Mike Montgomery.”
Cesare said the department has spent about $1.5 million of the $2 million the town borrowed for immediate expenses. He expects the clean-up to be completed in about four weeks.
