KENOSHA, Wis. — As thousands of Kenosha County residents continue to deal with widespread power outages following Monday’s severe thunderstorms, the City of Kenosha has announced a special storm debris pickup program to help residents clear fallen trees and brush from their properties.
The announcement comes as We Energies reports 30,643 customers without power in Kenosha County, the highest total of any county in its service area. Across southeastern and eastern Wisconsin, the utility reported 78,322 customers without electricity and 771 active outages as of about 9:20 p.m. Monday.
Many customers also received an automated phone call from We Energies warning that the storms caused extensive damage to electrical infrastructure and that restoration efforts could take multiple days in some areas because of the severity of the damage.
To help residents recover, the City of Kenosha said it will begin collecting storm-damaged trees and brush on Wednesday, July 29. Crews will pick up debris placed at the curb on residents’ regularly scheduled garbage collection days, with the special collection program continuing through Tuesday, Aug. 4.
Residents are asked to place storm-damaged trees and brush at the curb by 6 a.m. on their normal garbage collection day. No appointment is necessary during the special collection period.
Anyone who cannot get their storm debris to the curb before their scheduled pickup day should contact the City’s Department of Public Works at 262-653-4050 to arrange a brush pickup under the city’s normal collection rules.
The city also asked residents to report parkway trees blocking streets or sidewalks to the Parks Department at 262-653-4080. Officials noted that storm damage from trees on private property remains the responsibility of the property owner, who must either dispose of the debris or move it to the curb during the special collection period. Debris placed at the curb after a resident’s scheduled collection day will be the property owner’s responsibility to remove.
City officials are urging residents to use caution while cleaning up storm damage and to avoid placing brush in locations that could block roads, sidewalks, or access to utility infrastructure.
With utility crews working around the clock to restore power and municipal crews preparing to begin storm debris collection, local officials say recovery efforts are expected to continue for several days as Kenosha cleans up from one of the most significant summer storms to impact the area this year.
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