The City of Greenville has announced that the last of the debris caused by Hurricane Helene has been removed, officially ending the debris cleanup effort within the city limits.
Debris removal efforts began Oct. 1, just five days after the storm that brought extensive damage to the Upstate. Public Works reported more than 427,789 cubic yards of debris and 52 hazardous stumps removed. That’s enough debris to fill roughly 171 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
“This was a Herculean task and truly a team effort — not only by the city’s Public Works Department and our prepositioned contractors, but our City Manager’s office, other departments and also the citizens themselves,” said Dave Derrick, director of Public Works. “We are extremely grateful for everyone’s efforts and for the public’s patience as we worked over the past 100-plus days to bring our city back normal.”
Debris collected was first deposited behind the Greenville Convention Center, where it was converted into wood chips and hauled away. More than 1,460 loads of wood chips were removed, with the last load hauled away on Monday, Jan. 13. None of the debris went to a landfill or was burned; rather it will be reused as wood chips.
Any resident who believes they have uncollected debris caused by the storm can email the city at [email protected].
Written by the City of Greenville.