Emporia city officials have noted a lot of cleanup work across town, especially the southern half of the city, after Sunday night’s powerful storms.
At the Transfer Station, Solid Waste Supervisor Keith Senn says residents and arborists brought in 65 tons of brush debris, with over 230 people and a number of arborists going in and out just to drop off trees and limbs. The normal daily tally is around 8.5 tons, although that number can vary widely based on the day and the weather.
Senn tells residents to take a few common-sense steps if they are bringing in brush this week, starting with securing your loads:
Meanwhile, parks across town saw some tree damage, and Parks Director Kevin Hanlin says there was scattered damage in some parks, but the area from Peter Pan Park to Soden’s Grove — including the All Veterans Memorial and David Traylor Zoo — had notable damage.
The Peter Pan Park damage also included dugouts and a backstop at the Flint Hills Optimists baseball diamonds. Early repairs are done, with more work expected this summer. The David Traylor Zoo reopened Tuesday after tree limb damage and an extended power outage Monday, and there was some damage to the memorial but that has been largely cleaned up.
Absent any severe weather Tuesday afternoon, which is possible but unlikely, Hanlin expects the cleanup work could be largely done by the end of Tuesday.
*Click here for KVOE’s YouTube channel, including videos from the recent cleanup activity.
7 am Tuesday: Cleanup ongoing after Sunday’s potent storms
The impact continues from Sunday’s powerful storms.
The flood warning for the Neosho River at Emporia continues and actually has been extended. The Weather Service was initially calling for a crest of 19.4 feet around midnight, meaning minor flooding, but it has now increased the projected crest to 22.5 feet by Tuesday afternoon and it has extended the warning to Wednesday morning. The river was going above 20 feet at midnight. This means moderate flooding, including Prairie Street north of the bridge.
Tree cleanup is scattered across Emporia, but more prevalent for the south half of town after gusts between 60 and nearly 80 mph downed a lot of tree limbs and a few trees. There was also tree and structure damage at the Peter Pan Park Flint Hills Optimists baseball diamond, with at least two dugouts having roofs ripped off and the netting damaged for one of the backstops.
The David Traylor Zoo was also closed Monday due to tree damage inside the zoo and an extended power outage. Director Lisa Keith says the zoo will be open as normal Tuesday.
Solid Waste Supervisor Keith Senn noted an increase in brush debris at the Transfer Station but other details on that topic are currently pending.
Speaking of the power situation, Evergy’s outage map indicates all outages areawide have been handled after around 4,000 customers lost power Sunday night. Spokesperson Courtney Lewis says Evergy is always on alert for potential storm-related damage.
Sunday’s storms also generated a small tornado in far northwest Osage County. The National Weather Service says an EF-0 tornado touched down about eight miles due north of Burlingame just before 9:45 pm. The twister was on the ground for less than a mile and less than five minutes, generating peak winds of 85 mph. The maximum width was 40 yards.
Stay with KVOE, KVOE.com and KVOE social media for updates.
*Click here for KVOE’s YouTube channel, including videos from the recent cleanup activity.
