Latest windstorm information from Claremont police
Last Friday, gusty winds in excess of 70 miles an hour toppled trees and power lines in the City of Claremont and surrounding communities. For several days, parts of the city were without power as utility crews repaired downed power lines. Staff estimates that over 300 trees fell and a number of homes were damaged in the span of six hours. In the aftermath of the windstorm, at least eight major streets were completely blocked by fallen trees and numerous smaller streets were impassable. A survey of our city parks noted 91 trees fell and will need to be removed. Unfortunately, several large historic trees fell in Memorial Park and on College Avenue.
Over the last five days, city crews along with our contractors and Camp crews from the Los Angeles County Fire Department have worked to open streets, remove trees and branches, and clear debris. Staff anticipates debris cleanup will continue over the next week followed by repairs to streets, structures, and sidewalks. Clean up of private properties will be ongoing with the city providing resources for residents to dispose of debris.
The Community Services department will continue to accept damage reports from residents and respond to urgent and immediate safety hazards first. Crews will work through the weekend to remove tree stumps and branches. The city will remove tree branches in the streets and public rights-of-way. However, removal of trees from private property is the responsibility of the property owner. Homeowners with damage to their homes or cars may be eligible for repair costs through their homeowners and/or auto insurance policies. Before beginning repairs or tree removals, residents are encouraged to contact their insurance companies and document the damage.
The city has made the following resources available to residents to assist them during the recovery from this emergency.
The city has created an online wind storm information website with an online report for residents to request service. https://www.ci.claremont.ca.us/living/wind-storm-information
