Post Hurricane Idalia Cleanup

By Karl Stephens, CMCA, AMS, PCAM
General Manager/COO

Hurricane Idalia (Tropical Storm Idalia when it passed through our area) has come and gone, but there is a lot of cleanup remaining.

The Landings Association’s Public Works Team was here late into the evening removing trees that blocked ~15 roads. Our contracted landscaper, BrightView, also was here late assisting in that effort. At 7 this morning, both groups were back onsite assessing damage and determining next steps. The good news is that there is limited damage to common property, but there is much debris that needs to be removed. We’ve also heard of several homeowners sustaining damage to their homes from fallen trees.

Cleanup for TLA

For the Association, the first priority was to note any more downed trees or potential problem areas. We have a tree crew with a bucket truck that can handle many of the issues, and we’ll call in contractors for larger issues.

We have two tractors fitted with landscaping rakes that are collecting debris on the streets, assisted by staff using hand rakes. This debris is then placed into piles to be removed by grapple equipment. The debris is too large and too spread out for our street sweepers, which is why this first step is necessary. Then the sweepers will follow.

For the community paths, not only are large limbs and debris being manually removed and placed into piles, but we also have a large blower we can attach to one of our Utility Task Vehicles (UTV) to help clear the paths.

Please be patient during this work. The Association has 91 miles of roads and 22 miles of paved community paths. Our typical cycle time for sweeping all streets is two weeks, and that is without a large debris event, such as the one we recently experienced. Public Works staff will be working overtime to get the community back in top shape as quickly as possible.

Cleanup for Residents

Normally, yard debris (dry trash) can’t be placed curbside more than a day before Chatham County pickup (Tuesdays). Due to the extensive downfall, we will not be enforcing that at this time, as Chatham County is sure to be backed up with collections. We will send a separate email with more details.

Damage

As noted above, the Association suffered little physical damage to assets. Part of the roof on a Landings Harbor Marina boat rack peeled back and collapsed. This was not the new rack, which held up very well. In addition, two sailboats and their stands were blown over, which also caused some minor rail damage. We were fortunate not to have any worse.

The Landings Company (wholly owned subsidiary of the Association) suffered a building breach when a tree fell on its roof. The tree will be removed today, and TLCo has a contractor for the repairs. The Company remains open for business.

Final Thoughts

Kudos to our Security Team members, who remained on duty with business as usual before, during, and after the storm passed through the area.

Our Admin Building (600 Landings Way South) will remain closed today to walk-in traffic, but staff will continue to respond to emails and phone calls. We will reopen to walk-ins tomorrow.

Finally, if you see your neighbor might need help in cleaning up, please reach out to them. This is a good time to work together as a community.