Mt. Prospect announces brush cleanup plan

Village officials continue to be in communication with ComEd regarding power outages. As of 12 p.m. Thursday, approximately 5,200 ComEd customers in Mount Prospect remain without power. There are currently 31 ComEd crews working in town to restore service. According to ComEd representatives, service is expected to be restored to 90% of customers by late Thursday night. ComEd anticipates that the remaining 10% of customers should be back up by late Friday evening.

Traffic signals remain down on four major intersections. Residents are reminded to proceed with caution in these areas.

Fire, Police and Public Works crews are fully mobilized to assist residents and clear storm debris.

Tree Cleanup Efforts

Mount Prospect officials are asking all residents for their patience in regards to storm cleanup. Despite a massive cleanup effort which began immediately after Tuesday’s tornado hit, much work still remains, and will continue until completed.

The storm caused damage to thousands of public and private trees.

Immediately following Tuesday night’s storm, Public Works crews immediately swung into action with the goal of alleviating the most hazardous situations first.

Tuesday night, Village crews worked throughout the night. Initial goals were to open all streets as soon as possible in order to allow the passage of emergency vehicles and other traffic. Once roads were opened, trees that had fallen onto homes, cars, and driveways were cleared. This work was mostly completed as of 10 p.m. on Wednesday June 22, 2011. Once these safety hazards are eliminated, crews will continue removing broken limbs (hangers) still in trees, as well as entire trees that cannot be saved. Finally crews will begin brush and log pickup, street by street, throughout the entire town.

The Village has supplemented their own workforce with crews from the following companies: Kramer Tree Specialists, Inc., Powell Tree Care, Inc., and Homer Tree Care, Inc. Citizens are requested not to slow these crews’ progress by asking them to work on their privately owned trees. Information about how to hire a properly licensed tree care company, as well as how to make decisions about damaged trees, is available on the Village website, www.mountprospect.org.

Public Works staff from nearby communities such as Rolling Meadows, Arlington Heights and Crystal Lake arrived to help early Thursday morning. Crews from Elk Grove Village, Lake Zurich, Hanover Park, Palatine and Streamwood will arrive on Friday, June 24, 2011.

For this storm only, residents can put private and public brush and logs on parkways.

Thousands of trees still need removal or repair, and streets are lined with brush throughout the town. All brush and logs generated from the storm, whether from public or private trees, can be placed on the parkways to be picked up. This brush does not have to be bundled; however, we ask that citizens place the larger (butt) end of the branches toward the street.

Logs should be left as long as possible and stacked separately in the parkway next to the brush. This will save time as our crews work throughout the town. Please note that this is a ONE-TIME only suspension of the usual requirements regarding the disposal of private property tress/brush, due to the severity of this storm Villagewide.

The street by street brush pickup program will begin at 6 a.m. on Monday June 27, 2011. All brush must be placed at the curb by that time.

The brush pickup crews will begin at several locations throughout town. After a section is completed, that section and the completed date will be posted on a map on the Village website. Once the crews have completed brush pickup in a section, they will not return. At this time, we expect the street by street pickup to take well over a week to complete, so citizens’ patience will be appreciated! Although it’s possible some grass may turn brown due to brush lying on top of it, residents are reminded that even if the grass blades have died back, the roots will likely survive, allowing the turf to recover with careful watering. Please DO NOT put any debris into the street! This could lead to traffic accidents and personal injury. For this reason, anyone putting brush or logs into the street can be subject to citation.

The Village would also like to remind residents that only storm debris may be put onto the parkway for disposal. Any non-storm related tree trimming or yard waste will not be picked up by the storm cleanup crews. Please dispose of this waste according to the Village’s solid waste disposal guidelines.

Finally, citizens should not fear they are missing brush pickup in their neighborhood just because they see brush chippers crews working in their neighborhood between Thursday and the start of the brush pickup program. Rest assured that one complete pass of the entire Village will begin at 6 a.m. Monday. Tree Removal operations will run from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. each day for the duration of the cleanup effort.

The Village wishes to thank all residents for their cooperation and understanding during this time!