Recent storms felled fewer trees than previous ones, Modesto reports. Here’s why
As the rains fell and the winds gusted over nearly the last two weeks, Modesto’s forestry division buzzed with activity.
Public Works Director Bill Sandhu said Thursday that the division received 441 calls about trees, including fallen ones and limbs, from Dec. 31 through Wednesday. (Sandhu said that does not include about 100 duplicate calls for the same trees.)
He said there were 76 reports of trees causing damage. That included trees falling on houses or limbs striking parked cars. Sandhu said he was not aware of any reports of injuries.
Despite more than 4.5 inches of rain falling since Dec. 27, and the gusting winds, Sandhu said Modesto’s trees fared better than they had in similar storms in past years. He said the forestry division could get 1,200 calls over 48 hours in those storms.
“Any damage, any property damage, is too much,” Sandhu said, “but compared to past storm events, the trees did really well. I think it is because the city has stepped up on its tree maintenance in the last couple of years.”
Sandhu said the city has about 80,000 trees along its streets and about 40,000 in its parks. City workers have trimmed about 10,000 in the last year, about twice as many as it trims in a typical year, he said. He added that about 1,600 to 1,700 dead or diseased trees were removed. That also is about twice as many as in a typical year.
The city’s urban forest is one of Modesto’s jewels, but also a source of frustration for residents. The city has not had the funding to adequately maintain its trees, leading to trees and limbs falling and damaging parked cars, garages, homes and other property.
The City Council in July 2021 approved spending nearly $2.6 million over two years to ramp up the care of city trees. The council approved spending about $1.8 million in the first year. That included hiring a company to remove nearly 1,000 diseased or dying trees.
The $1.8 million came from the general fund, which the city seldom uses to pay for special projects. But Modesto used the fund in this instance because of the nearly $46 million in one-time funding it received from the American Rescue Plan, the $1.9 trillion pandemic relief measure President Joe Biden signed in March 2021.
Sandhu said 60 to 70 Public Works employees from the forestry and street divisions worked during the recent storms. Street division workers filled 400 to 500 potholes a day. He said Cal Fire crews consisting of a total of 25 to 30 California Conservation Corps workers also helped.
Modesto residents availed themselves of the sand and sandbags the city provided. Sandhu said residents filled 12,000 to 15,000 sandbags from Tuesday of last week through Monday. “That is over 200 tons of sand,” he said.
Sandhu said the city still has sand. Modesto households can get as many as 20 sandbags at no cost at the city’s Corporation Yard, 501 N. Jefferson St. You need to bring a shovel, and the city provides the bags and the sand.
Residents can go to modestogov.com/storm for storm-related resources, including who to call to report power failures and street flooding.
This story was originally published January 12, 2023 at 2:13 PM.
