Hempstead Town Working to Clear Sandy's Mess

The Town of Hempstead announced Wednesday that nearly half of the downed trees had been cleared from town roadways by the highway department.

According to town press secretary Susan Trenkle-Pokalsky, there were approximately 1,000 trees down in various town roadways, 400 of which have been cleared the town's crews.

"In the case of trees entangle with or touching electrical wires, it is required that LIPA certify that the wires are de-energized before our crews can clear them," Trenkle-Pokalsky said.

Trenkle-Pokalsky also said that once state Gov. Andrew Cuomo declared a state of emergency, all municipalities became eligible for FEMA relief.

"Hempstead Town will be seeking FEMA reimbursement," she said.

Sanitation

In the wake of the devastation left behind by Hurricane Sandy, the Hempstead Town Department of Sanitation is working to assist residents in the midst of cleaning up their properties and their neighborhoods.    

“We want to do everything possible to help residents and accommodate them as they clean up in the wake of Hurricane Sandy,” Supervisor Kate Murray said.    

In an effort to help residents seeking to remove storm-related waste from their homes, Supervisor Murray has directed that hours be extended at the Merrick Sanitation Facility’s “Homeowner Area” for people to drop off debris, tree limbs and other rubbish. Until further notice, extended hours at the Merrick facility, located at 1600 Merrick Road, will be seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.  

Sanitation crews will be making their way through the township through the weekend for garbage and recycling collection. Residents are encouraged to leave their garbage and recyclables curbside for pickup. Special pickup requests are not required during storm cleanup as debris, tree limbs and other storm-related waste will also be collected curbside. Residents are kindly asked to neatly bundle all debris to assist the crews as they work to help residents as quickly as possible.    

Sanitation crews will make every effort to reach all service areas, but some areas may be unreachable due to downed electrical wiring, flooding and other dangerous obstructions.    

Please note that these services are available only to residents served by the Town of Hempstead’s Department of Sanitation (Districts 3, 4 and 5). Those residing in areas that receive services by Special Sanitation Districts and village departments should call their providers for more information. For a list of contact numbers for the Special Sanitation Districts and Village Sanitation Departments, visit www.toh.li/sanitation-department/sanitation-districts.