ORANGE PARK, Fla. – Disaster debris contractors arrived Sunday in Clay County to get set up and started to make runs to collect debris left in the wake of Hurricane Irma.
The county said multiple passes will be made so residents shouldn't worry if all their debris is not collected in the first pass.
Teresa Cornett, who lives in Orange Park said she knows that when the debris haulers show up to her neighborhood, they won’t be able fit it all in one truckload.
“If you go down the next street, you’ll see large trees that have been chopped up with chainsaws. If you go down to the stop sign, you can’t even go around the stop sign because it goes out into the street,” Cornett said. “They’re supposed to pick it up today or tomorrow, but we don’t know. They don’t have a schedule evidently.”
Orange Park within the town limits has its own set of haulers. Countywide, Doctors Lake and the Lazy Acres area around Middleburg will see the collection crews first, because there’s concern there that the trash could pile high enough to eventually encroach on the road.
Some locals worry the mountains of branches and trash will just continue to grow.
Alice Fletcher, whose neighborhood is already filled, said some neighbors haven’t even started unloading trash.
“When she gets her stuff out, it’s going to take up this whole area,” Fletcher said. “She doesn’t’ have anything out of her house yet. All the furniture, everything she has is ruined.”
Fletcher said she just hopes she can pull her car into her driveway before the cleanup is through.
A Clay County emergency management official pointed out that 53 of Florida's 67 counties were impacted by the hurricane, and there are only so many trash haulers nationally to help.
Haul it yourself
Clay County is also making a drop site for residential vegetative debris from homes impacted by Irma.
The temporary site will be in the back parking area of the fairgrounds.
The hours for the drop-off site are 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
The rear parking area at the fair will be set up for residents to drive in and drop yard debris only to ease traffic congestion at our landfill sites.
All residential customers are asked to use the entrance to the fairgrounds off Spring Bank Road.
Know the rules
All types of debris should be separated, such as electronics, large appliances, vegetative, construction debris and household garbage.
If debris is mixed together, it will not be picked up, county officials said.
Residents should also not stack debris around mailboxes, cable boxes, or other types of road side structures (see diagram below).
The county's normal waste service, Advanced Disposal, began collecting leaves, grass clippings and small yard debris Saturday that was bagged in a 40-gallon or smaller can or heavy-duty plastic trash bag not exceeding 50 pounds.
Stumps, trees and limbs may not exceed 4 feet in length or 50 pounds in weight for a total of no more than 5 cubic yards to be collected by Advanced Disposal.
The county anticipates its construction and demolition debris plan will be released in two weeks to provide residents ample time to conduct clean-up of their homes and businesses.
Anyone with questions about debris removal in Clay County can call 904-284-7704.