Parked Cars Preventing Debris Removal

Some of the crews working to clear the tree branches are running into roadblocks.  The News On 6's Emory Bryan reports the trucks are working all day long.  Along some streets, people have left for work leaving a car parked by the limbs or the debris is too close to a fence or a mailbox.

A two man crew made their way down Braden Avenue near 32nd Street, loading their truck and trailer six times before lunch.  They're paid by the load, so moving fast is the best way to work, but cars in the way have been slowing them down.
 
"We had to pass a few by where there's been cars sitting," said Carl Jackson who is removing debris.

Even though the trucks can easily pick up a car, they can't reach over one to get to the limbs, and in neighborhoods where cars are commonly parked on the street, the crews are slowed down by asking people to move the cars.

The city urges people to be ready when the trucks come to the neighborhood, with limbs at the curb and cars out of the way.

And this is another problem.  Even with the loader working, and the trailer blocking most of the street, people are driving past the trucks not recognizing the danger.

"You don't want to be driving past the truck when it's loading in your nice little sports car because it could be damaged, so if you see it, go around the block," said Bob Bledsoe with the City of Tulsa.

At least 76 loader trucks are on the job in Tulsa, with more on the way.  It should take two weeks at least to cover the city the first time, and they'll return twice after that.  Every step of what they do is monitored, and at the dump site, each load is checked to make sure it's full.

The debris pile is growing while the city works on hiring a company to grind it into mulch.

If the crews pass by your property, they'll be back on the next pass, but that will be several weeks away.