Cleaning Up Tree Debris

A huge concern for people right now is getting downed trees off their homes, away from power lines and out of drive-ways. One tree company has had 1,600 calls since Monday morning. They have five crews working in Tulsa and many more on the way. The News On 6's Lori Fullbright reports whether you're hiring someone or doing it yourself, there are some things you need to know about removing the debris.

Paul Nosak's crews are working on overdrive to handle the emergency tree removal needs first, like a tree that took out the front of a house, trees on power lines and trees blocking streets and driveways. They'll come back later for the non-emergency jobs.

"We've got five more bucket crews on their way, two more cranes coming to town. People we've worked with in Hurricane Ivan, Hurricane Charley. We've worked all over the country with these partners of mine," Paul Nosak of Nosak Tree Service.

Paul says most homeowners insurance policies cover trees on houses, fences, across driveways and across power line service drops or telephone lines. He says beware of any company asking your for money up front or charging what seems like exorbitant prices, which is price gouging.

"It's illegal everywhere in a disaster and this has been declared a disaster area. How we're charging and billing is billing the same way if we were removing the tree while it was standing," said Paul Nosak.

Paul says if you plan to tackle the job yourself, wear a hard hat to protect yourself from falling limbs and ice. Don't climb into the tree, only cut what you can from the ground. And, protect your saw with the right technique.

"Look at the limb, if it's arched with both ends on the ground, cut it from the bottom so you don't kink your saw. If one end is hanging up in the air, cut it from the top," advises Paul Nosak with Nosak Tree Service.

Otherwise, you jam the saw and break the grommets which means you'll have no clutch and no trigger and you'll be stopped before you get started. If you cut up your own limbs, make them about four to five feet in length and all pointed the same way and put them on your curb, so FEMA can eventually pick up the debris.

Paul says the emergency tree removal will take weeks and dealing with all the damaged trees after that, will still take six months or better.