WILMINGTON — “The clean up begins!” aptly began Wilmington Mayor John Stanforth’s Facebook post early Monday.
“The M&R (Streets) Department is beginning to remove tree and brush debris. Please bring your limbs and brush to the curbside of your lawn. The M&R workers will be driving through neighborhoods looking for clean up areas but will also respond to reported areas.
“Please make your request directly to my office, as the crews will be out working and not in the office to take your call” at 937-382-5458.
Stanforth noted few items to help the process go smoother and faster:
• Do not put the debris in the street.
• No construction material or trash
• The M&R crew will not be entering backyards or providing tree removal services.
• Please be patient. They are dedicated to help everyone and they are moving as quickly and as safely as possible.
Clinton Countians outside of the city should check with their local government entities on the status of brush clean-up.
Stanforth also pointed out that “City of Wilmington residents may drop off storm debris at no cost to the resident to the Wilmington Landfill. Items are limited to tree logs, limbs, branches, leaves, and plants” 7 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Monday-Friday at 397 S. Nelson Ave. Please call 937-382-6474 if you have questions about this service offering.
He added, “As with the other storm debris services, no trash or construction material is permitted with this free service. This service is limited to persons living within the city limits.”
Wild night
Thousands of Clinton Countians lost power for at least a few hours Friday night into Saturday, and some remained without power into Sunday and a few even into Monday.
Winds gusted up to 70 miles per hour while well over 3 inches of rain fell during the storms and rain that began Friday night into Saturday morning in Clinton County.
Meteorologist James Gibson of the National Weather Service in Wilmington told the News Journal they recorded up to 3.53 inches of rain with other parts of the county recording around 2.9 inches and 2.66 inches at the Wilmington Air Park.
A 60 mph wind gust was recorded at 8:48 p.m. at the Air Park, while minutes later the NWS recorded a wind gust of 70 mph, said Gibson.
The storm entered Clinton County at about 8:33 p.m. and hit Blanchester hardest beginning at around 9:10 p.m.
There were many reports of cloud rotations and officials were examining the hardest-hit areas, but radar indicated it was straight line winds that caused the damage, said Gibson.
The News Journal received several dozen photos of storm damage posted to our Facebook page.
Sue Firman commented that, on Reeder Road, there was “4 inches of rain in the gauge, lot of limbs down, trees stripped of bark and no electric for over 14 hours. That’s just the back yard. … Worst storm I’ve seen in this area. Thank God for generators.”
John Noland’s post summed it all up well: “Wild.”
