Crews still working in Sarasota County to clear debris left behind by Hurricane Ian

SARASOTA, Fla. - Trucks and crews cleaning up debris have become a familiar sight in Sarasota County. They are still working as fast and as hard as they can to get debris left behind by Hurricane Ian out of yards. 

For the last three weeks, Jeff Wise from North Carolina has been working to clear up what the storm left in Sarasota County. He and his crew are one of many contracted to pick up storm debris in the area. 

"It's sad to see the destruction to the tree wise in this area," Wise said. "You drive around, and you’re not going to go anywhere without seeing some tree debris or a big tree that didn’t make it through."

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Wise said they've been working seven days a week from sun up to sun down. 

Rothenbach Park is one site where debris is offloaded, and so far, the county said 1.1 million cubic yards of debris has been collected. The total would fill 342 Olympic-sized swimming pools.

"Looking at Hurricane Irma we picked up about 300,000 cubic yards. It took us several months," said Wendi Crisp from Sarasota County's Solid Waste department. "The fact that we’ve eclipsed 1.1 million cubic yards in just three weeks is quit a difference there."

She said the debris is turned into mulch, which will later be used in people's gardens, landscapes or for agriculture purposes. The mound at the park has caught the attention of many.

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"The crews are amazing," said resident Amy Dodge. "It's incredible our neighborhood in Bent Tree is fairly picked up. They came along and picked up all the debris."

When trucks that are used for picking up debris pass by, you can often hear the shouts of thank you and happy homeowners. 

"I have no complaints whatsoever. They’ve done such a good job," said resident Nancy Hutchinson.

Their job continues until every last pile is gone.

"Everyone has their life back per say, and they’re ready to see the rest of what’s left disappear, and it’s cool to come through and clean it up for them and get it out of the way," said Wise.

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Two free public drop-off sites remain available for residents to self-haul and self-unload vegetative storm debris from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., daily:

• Rothenbach Park, 8650 Bee Ridge Road, Sarasota.
• Jackson Road Transfer Station, 250 S. Jackson Road, Venice.

Public drop-off sites require proof of residency. 

Assessment teams visited active collection zones in unincorporated county to evaluate the amount of construction and demolition (C&D) debris and household goods that have been placed curbside. Collection for C&D debris and household goods is underway in active zones that were cleared of vegetative storm debris during the first pass.

C&D debris includes bricks, lumber, siding, gutters, roof/shingles, screens, drywall, vinyl/wood fences, aluminum and screening. These items should be placed separately from household goods, which include items such as carpets, furniture and other large household items.

Hazardous waste items including paints, chemicals, cleaning supplies and batteries will not be collected. These materials should be disposed of at the Bee Ridge Chemical Collection Center, 8750 Bee Ridge Road, Sarasota, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday, or the Central County Landfill, 4010 Knights Trail Road, Nokomis, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday.

For more information call the Sarasota County Contact Center by dialing 3-1-1 or visit scgov.net.