First round of Ormond Beach debris collection may be complete in a couple weeks | Observer Local News

Over 50,000 cubic yards of debris have been picked up in the city of Ormond Beach following Hurricane Milton.

The city estimates its contractor, CrowderGulf Disaster Recovery and Debris Management, is about a third of the way through, as Assistant City Manager Shawn Finley, who gave the City Commission an update of hurricane recovery at its meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 6, said they believe the storm caused about 150,00 cubic yards of debris.

"They were on the ground within three or four days following the storm," Finley said. "We have consistently every day since we activated them had 10 trucks on the street."

CrowderGulf is collecting about 3,000 cubic yards of vegetative debris a day. Finley said he expects to complete the first round of collection throughout the city within the next couple of weeks, and hopes to be able to get a second pass authorized from FEMA.

Hurricane Milton brought 23 inches of rain to Ormond Beach, Finley said.

"Twenty-three inches of rain, which we got over the course of 18 hours, is an unbelievable amount of rain," he said.

During the storm, he said he and city staff checked out Fleming Avenue, a "hot spot" for flooding," at around 3 a.m. It was still passable. But, four hours later, the street was 12-18 inches underwater.

The city experienced the most flooding in the neighborhoods near Central Park and those near Ormond Beach Middle School. A total of 45 homes flooded, down from the over 100 home that flooded in a 2009 rain event.

"Out steps to improve Central Park have helped a lot of those people," Finley said. "We still have some work to work on."

At the meeting, Ormond Beach resident Tommy Bozeman asked the city to look into the flooding issues in the Durrance Acres neighborhood. This isn't a new or isolated issue, he said.

"The same thing happened with Ian," Bozeman said. "The same thing happens when we get heavy rains, just not quite to the same extent."

Extensive flooding on dead-end roads make them impassable for EMS and first responders, said Bozeman, a former Ormond Beach firefighter. This makes it a life or death matter, Bozeman said.

"This is not a roadway issue," he said. "This is a stormwater issue and it's not resulting from runoff of roadways."

City Commissioner Lori Tolland asked the commissioners to hold a discussion on flooding — one that would inform them on the last stormwater study conducted, its stormwater fees and the list of projects that have been funded and those that may require state and federal aid. She also wished for an update on sewer projects, as a water force main broke three times on Riverside Drive during the storm.

"Sewage was just going into someone's house," Tolland said. "Nobody wants that. Are we just patching things up or is it time to replace?"

The commission agreed that a workshop on flooding would be appropriate.

"I think it's very important," Commissioner Travis Sargent said. "I think we've made great strides over the years, but obviously I think we need to look at how we can even do better."