Residents should get materials to the curb by 7 a.m., keep streets clear of parked vehicles to allow collection crews clear access to trash
DEARBORN – More than 100 trash trucks will pick up and cart away flood-damaged materials at curbs throughout the city during a comprehensive sweep Saturday.
Residents with flood-damaged materials should have their items at the curb by 7 a.m. Saturday.
To allow sanitation trucks and crews easy access to flood-damaged trash, residents are asked to keep their parked vehicles off the streets every day in areas with curbside debris, but especially on Saturday during the sweep.
Police will assist in the process of keeping streets clear of parked vehicles in order to accommodate this effort to safely and efficiently remove the remaining items from curbs. A vehicle parked in a way that interferes with bulk pickup will be towed at the owner’s expense.
It is expected that the Saturday sweep will allow crews to complete the removal of all materials.
Residents should remove or pound nails from wood and paneling so that collection crews can safely pick up materials. Items that pose a threat to the safety of crews will not be collected.
No household hazardous materials will be collected at the curb. This includes paint cans with liquid still in them, some household cleaners and pesticides.
Residents who are not able to place all of their flood-damaged items curbside by 7 a.m. should call the Sanitation Division at 313-943-2433 to schedule a special pickup for their damaged materials at a later time.
After Saturday’s sweep, city crews will evaluate the needs of residents with flood-damaged items before proceeding with the special collection.
Mayor John O’Reilly Jr., with support from the City Council, arranged for the Saturday sweep by bringing in an additional trash removal contractor, Rizzo Environmental Services, and adding to the extra crews already working from the city’s regular contractor, Republic Services.
Employees from the Department of Public Works also have been reassigned to remove flood-damaged trash and have been working 10- to 12-hour days since Aug. 11, including during the weekends.
About 2,400 tons of bulk items have been picked up in 17 days. That is equivalent to the amount of bulk trash the city usually picks up in an entire year, city officials said.
The collection was impacted when some DPW crews were assigned to assist with the urgent removal of trees and large limbs that fell following the thunderstorm Tuesday.