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Storm damage clean up continues ahead of impending snow

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Posted at 5:13 PM, Mar 24, 2023
and last updated 2023-03-24 18:13:35-04

As another round of heavy snow moves toward southeast Wisconsin, crews continue to clean up damage two weeks after the last storm hit.

August Hoppe, president of Hoppe Tree Service, said the last big storm was the roughest one he has seen in 10 years.

"There’s still lots of broken branches. We’ve been cleaning up every day. A lot of it is smaller branches but they’re still big trees that have broken or have split so we’re still really busy doing that stuff. People are still going out in the yard and finding other branches," Hoppe said.

On Friday, crews were at home in Mequon clearing damage and cutting down tree limbs that could susceptible to future issues.

"We try to do a lot of prevention while we're here because we don't want to come back. We don't want anything that you want to be destroyed or damaged," said arborist Shane Salters.

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Crews in Mequon clearing damage and cutting down tree limbs.
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Crews in Mequon clearing damage and cutting down tree limbs.
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Crews in Mequon clearing damage and cutting down tree limbs.

Milwaukee's Department of Public Works reported that high-priority damage has been addressed but tree cleanup is ongoing. By last Friday, DPW received 2,352 calls but that number has grown. A spokesperson notes crews have also responded to debris that was not reported.

Hoppe does not believe the upcoming storm will be as rough, but there is still some concern.

"If there are weakened branches on some trees they could break in the weight to the snow today. So I encourage people to look at their trees. If they see something vulnerable, to take note of that, call an arborist. If you have multi-stem arborvitaes maybe strap them up so the stems don’t bend in the weight of the snow," Hoppe explained.

Meanwhile, families across the area are ready for spring break.

Kristen Velasquez and her son Preston were filling their tires with air before their trip to Washington D.C.

Velasquez was grateful they will miss the snow because it gets dicey on the roads.

"It is scary. I hope everyone is safe. Hopefully, this is the last snowstorm," Velasquez said.


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