The cost to the city has risen to about $650,000, spokeswoman Cathie Butler said in an interview. And the emergency response is not over, said Greg Wright, the city’s emergency management director.
The city’s emergency operations center is still open and has been since Thursday’s ice storm, the longest it has ever been working. The center coordinates storm response efforts among city departments.
“This was a major event for us,” said Rich Hoey, the city’s interim public works director. Public works crews went on 24-hour operations starting Jan. 14 and lasting the next eight days.
Crews applied de-icer before and after the snow, a new step that he said paid off. The city also deployed a grader, which prevented ruts from developing in the driving lanes.
Parks, stormwater and garbage crews also pitched in on the storm response effort. The Olympia Fire Department called businesses with flat roofs to warn them, and with the Police Department, it closed off dangerous areas.
Hoey said there was no major damage to public facilities.
Four crews continue to assess damage to city trees, said Tom Hill, the city’s building official. He said inspectors have analyzed 1,500 specific data points, looking for trees, lines down, flat roofs and carports.
Not all trees that have a broken limb are hazardous or need to be removed, he added. Hill also advised people not to cut down trees for firewood on public property because of the danger.
Garbage collection was delayed for days, but now 99 percent of the city has been picked up, and 100 percent will get collection by Friday, he said.
City Council members said they were happy with the city’s response.
“I think we did well as a community,” Mayor Stephen Buxbaum said.
Councilman Jim Cooper expressed concern that many people didn’t clean their sidewalks and suggested the city discuss an ordinance to make that mandatory. He also suggested the city have a social media presence with the storm, and that a wood chipper be brought in to neighborhoods to allow residents to keep wood chips.
City Manager Steve Hall said the city studied that, and it would be expensive.
He also praised the city’s storm response.
Matt Batcheldor: 360-704-6869 mbatcheldor@theolympian.com
