Last pass for island hurricane debris begins Monday
For folks returning to Gasparilla Island, large piles of hurricane debris lining Gasparilla Road have been the dominant image. While much of the debris has been removed, there is still plenty to go around. The piles have continued to grow.
Last weekend, the sofas and upholstered furniture in front of the Johann Fust Library were finally taken away. They had been here at least since Milton and may well have been from Helene. Over the weekend, crews were active across the island to try to get a handle on it. One specific reason is that for the next three months, road crews will be here rebuilding washed out streets and utilities and they need all the trash gone.
What a wonderful sight it was along Gulf Boulevard, where all the trash was removed, in what had been ugly piles lining the GICIA Bike Trail.
On Monday Dec. 9, Lee County will be beginning its final rounds of removing hurricane debris across the island. (See story, on page 20.) After this round of pickups, any debris that is left by the road will not be picked up, unless it is through normal weekly trash pickup. This is for residential trash.
But there has been an unfortunate habit during this set of storms, something that happened during Ian, as well: illegal dumping. Over the last week, we have had a number of reports of illegal dumping foiled by the Lee County Sheriff’s Department. These were stopped by residents calling their non-emergency number, listed below.
In cases, including an afternoon report on Tuesday, Nov. 26, the Lee County Sheriff’s department resolved a case of possible dumping at 2:03 p.m. by merely showing up. The issue is simple. Commercial entities should not be dumping in the public right-of-way. They need to remove debris themselves.
Two weeks ago, we reminded residents of the law on this. We wrote:
“Florida code 403.413 is specific about debris and trash dumping when it comes to any commercial dumping from a contractor. It is a third-degree felony, and a contractor who does it is also subject to the forfeiture of his equipment. The law also specifies that if the trash comes from a commercial vehicle, that person is presumed to have dumped the litter or raw human waste for commercial purposes.”
There have been some light moments with our Boca Grande Trash.
Residents have helped out with removing some of the debris by the roadside, in a sort of “Antiques Roadshow” redux. Some of the debris has been extremely tempting, if you are not embarrassed to be seen snooping through the piles. Some great finds out on Gasparilla Road include smashingly handsome antique wicker, and sturdy brushed aluminum outdoor furniture, resembling Tropitone.
Those items did not last long, and anyone who drove past these missed something great.
Some were quick with upholstered pillows too; they had not been wet during the storm, but were on top of sofas that were.
Currently, crews from CrowderGulf are around the island, clearing streets. For just Boca Grande, they have now removed approximately 65,000 cubic yards of storm trash. There will be more to do. Do not add to their work.
Note: If you see illegal dumping taking place, residents should call the Lee County Sheriff’s Office non-emergency line at (239) 477-1000. Take a photo, too. Illegal dumping in a county right of way by a contractor can also be reported by a Lee County Request for Action, or RFA, at leegov.com/rfa
Garland Pollard is editor of the Boca Beacon. Email letters and comments to editor@bocabeacon.com.
