AUGUSTA, Ga. (WJBF) – Storm debris stacked high on this street in west Augusta, it’s the fourth pile the owner has put out, waiting for the trucks to come by again.
“Actually, they were here yesterday getting stumps. They’re coming back on Thursday,” said Becky Risteen.
Five months after starting cleanup, storm debris remains on city streets.
Fran Bennett walks a lot in her west Augusta neighborhood, where the city says the last pass has been conducted, but she’s still seeing debris.
“I don’t have a remedy for it. I wish I did. I feel like our commissioners are on top of it, there’s so much,” said Bennett.
But the piles are growing. Two new large ones were placed in the median on Henry Street, even though the city says this area has seen its last pass.
“It irks me, it does. It makes me very upset. Not sure who dumped this, but we have got to start doing something as far finding people holding people accountable could have been a tree service from somebody’s yard who comes over and dumps this but this is just wrong,” said Commissioner Catherine Smith Rice.
Augusta is rushing to end the tree debris removal, but for some commissioners, seeing is not believing.
“They say it’s going to be picked up all by next week George, I don’t see it happening and we have Masters less than three weeks away,” said Rice.
“They’ll make another pass, I guess, after the tournament. I don’t know if they’ll be able to get this one, but there’s always hope,” said Risteen.
But for many, their hope is to finally get all the storm damage picked up, and soon.
