CONYERS, Ga. — Rockdale County Emergency Management said its focus on Friday was "debris management" following an EF-2 tornado that hit the area earlier in the week.
“We've been in our response phase when it comes to getting everything out of the road,” Meredith Barnum, Rockdale County EMA’s deputy director, said of the past couple of days. “Now we're finally to the place we can get stuff out of the road, and we can focus on hauling it out of the area.”
She said they are now working on activating their debris contractor.
“So someone who can actually help us get these massive oak trees which have fallen down and into the road out of the right of way. Our county departments are amazing, and they've been working around the clock, and they've been doing a lot,” Barnum said. “But we just don't have every piece of equipment that we need for this type of job. So, that's why we are activating the debris hauler right now. We're also working on activating some non-profits to help us get stuff out of private property.”
Jason Hayes with AKA Tree Service has been in Conyers since the storm hit.
“When we roll up on a job, we have to look at all access points: which way we can come in and out,” Hayes said. “We come up and get that most dangerous trees off first, lift them off the house safely, and then stack them up and pull everything off safely at one time.”
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He said one of their biggest jobs was a house in the Briarwood neighborhood, which had nine trees that had collapsed down on it.
“So we had to remove all of them, get the tenant out of the house for him, get his car backed out because he was kind of stranded in here,” Hayes said. “And so we're just here to help -- help the community and make it right for them.”
Barnum was out surveying the Briarwood neighborhood on Friday.
“This is one of our many beautiful neighborhoods in Rockdale that is blessed with large, beautiful, mature trees. And they're gorgeous to look at,” Barnum said. “But when they fall like this, they are a hefty lift, quite literally. It's going to take us a couple cranes to go ahead and get everything out of the area. So that's why we're needing to activate a bit more of advanced machinery.”
Barnum said Rockdale County EMA will stage the machinery tomorrow morning so the clean-up can continue.
Rockdale County EMA also has a hotline it said residents can call if they need help. Call 770-278-8300 and provide your name, contact number and address.