VILANO BEACH, Fla. — As cleanup continues from Hurricane Ian, potential costs are now coming into focus. For some counties, removing debris and rebuilding damaged structures will take months or years and it will be expensive.
“Still raking up debris," Neena Guidi, a Davis Shores native, said.
Monday was the third day of clean up efforts for Neena Guidi’s Davis Shores home. The bags of leaves and yard waste were piled up in her yard.
“It’s labor at this point, I do have some damage, I do have hard wood floors and right by the back door the wood got wet so it’s puckering," Guidi said.
Dozens of St Johns County workers also spent the day clearing drains and picking up debris. Over in porpoise point, some roads remain closed as workers remove sand left by storm surge.
County Public Works Director Greg Caldwell says the cleanup could be costly.
“So right now for debris management we’re looking about a million dollars. Which, this is a smaller event then what was generated during Irma and Mathew, so we feel like we can get out there and hopefully get it down pretty quickly," Greg Caldwell, the St Johns County Public Works Director, said.
For comparison, it cost the county $13 million for debris removal following Hurricane Irma and $14 million after Matthew. This doesn't include costs for things such as emergency operations, repairs to inundated roads, or permanent restorations (utilities, parks, etc.)
St Johns County trash pick is back on regular schedule. For residents cleaning their yards, pick ups are in the works.
“Normal standard containerized debris should be picked up by your normal provider. Anything that was storm generated, we will use our debris management contractor. It is a separate contractor that will handle that, so just be patient with us but we are making a plan to address everybody’s needs," Caldwell said.
It took the county nearly six months to restore the are after Irma. Officials say this time, clean-up will not take that long.