Kansas town reverses course on storm cleanup after hundreds posted on Facebook

Susan Pilgrim had water pouring into her bathroom after a tree fell on her roof during storms on Monday night.

“Rain went gushing through the exhaust fan in the bathroom,” said Pilgrim, a Spring Hill resident. “I got a kitchen wastebasket, which is really tall, and put it underneath the exhaust fan because that was the only thing I could think of — flight or flight mode at the moment.”

When members of her church came by the next day to help her out, Pilgrim discovered that the large tree knocked her chimney and created a hole in the roof.

“We were trying to find something that would cover (the hole) and what covered it was a Tupperware lid,” she said. “I was telling a neighbor about that and she goes, ‘Tupperware: it’s not only for leftovers.’”

While the small city split between Johnson and Miami counties didn’t have a tornado touch down — as opposed to other Kansas towns that saw significant wreckage — Spring Hill saw high winds that uprooted trees, scattered debris, and, in some cases, caused flooding.

The city has since mobilized pick up crews to help with the cleanup — with Pilgrim signing up to get help from the Public Works team to pick up debris — but that wasn’t always the case.

Following the storms, the city announced on its public Facebook page on Tuesday that “damage across the city isn’t widespread” and the city wouldn’t conduct a tree limb pick-up or drop-off for residents, but staff would continue to monitor conditions.

Residents pushed back on the city’s decision. In less than 24 hours, the city’s Facebook post garnered more than 300 comments from residents — sharing their frustration with the city’s decision and their experiences during the storms.

“I’m deeply dissatisfied with the city’s decision not to provide debris pickup for tree limbs and other storm-related damage following the recent tornado,” resident Tom Pagano commented. “The explanation that the damage ‘is not widespread enough’ is unacceptable. When residents suffer property damage from a natural disaster, the extent of spread should not determine whether basic cleanup assistance is offered.”

Changing its course

It appears the outraged residents’ comments caught city and elected leaders’ attention. Mayor Chad Young and Kansas Rep. Chip VanHouden chimed in, saying that they’re working with the state to figure out a way to bring cleanup assistance.

“I don’t think the initial statement came out the way that I would like it to,” Young told The Star. “So I came back and took full responsibility for it, and we kind of regrouped and decided what we were going to do quicker than we were planning.”

On Wednesday, Spring Hill updated their post — informing residents that Young met with the Public Works Department and city staff to figure out a way to help clean up. A few hours later, the city announced on its Facebook page that Public Works finished picking up downed trees on city streets and is starting to collect smaller debris in residential areas.

While it’s nice to have taken care of residents, Young said he wished that the controversy didn’t have to happen up front.

“As long as we can get people taken care of and we have a future plan going forward,” Young said. “That’s all we can really do, try to be better in the future and not have this type of stuff happen as far as the reaction to it.”

“We’d like to be proactive rather than reactive, and at this point we’re being a little reactive because we didn’t have a plan. So going forward, hopefully we’ll have a plan and it will be a lot more seamless and people know what to expect.”

Debris pickup until Monday

Spring Hill spokesperson Jenna Gant said that crews will pick up smaller tree limbs on the curb until Monday morning. The city is working with a contractor to haul larger debris.

Only tree debris will be collected, Gant said. Residents must place their trees within 10 feet of their curbs by 7 a.m. on Monday.

Avoid placing debris near mailboxes and under electrical lines because debris will be picked up by mechanical equipment.

If residents still need help with cleanup, residents can request cleanup assistance or sign up as a volunteer to help other neighbors in need.