More than one month has passed since the impacts of post-tropical storm Fiona were first felt across Prince Edward Island and in the City of Charlottetown. It is important to recognize the hundreds of staff, dedicated partners and community members who have worked tirelessly on recovery efforts. In the weeks following the storm, City work crews dedicated their efforts to cleaning streets and sidewalks, assisting EMO partners with service recovery in priority areas and providing comforts at Reception Centres, which saw more than 15,000 total visits during their 17 days of operation.
As the City transitions towards winter operations, the City’s Emergency Measures team and EMO partners will continue recovery and clean up efforts while balancing the delivery of core services. Recovery efforts will continue in several areas of focus, including:
- sidewalk clean up, repair and replacement;
- parks and trails clean up;
- roadside debris pick up; and,
- administration of the residential property clean up program.
Due to the volume of fallen and damaged trees, this work is expected to continue for some time.
Today’s update will be the final weekly update. From now on, topic-specific updates on recovery efforts will be issued on an as-needed basis.
Residential Property Clean Up Program
The City of Charlottetown, in partnership with the Government of Prince Edward Island, continues to help administer the residential property clean up program to support residents with the impact of post-tropical storm Fiona. Specifically, the program will assist residents with cleaning up damaged and fallen trees, along with removing tree debris from their private property. This program covers Fiona-related uninsurable losses and damage to residential properties, including trees fallen in yards, damaged trees at risk of falling, and basic debris clean up on private property in the City of Charlottetown.
Charlottetown residents can apply for the new program online or by phone. Next, City staff will assess the applications, conduct site visits and evaluate reported damage in order to prioritize impacted properties. City-contracted crews will then be deployed to address and clear damaged trees from these properties.
To date, more than 1,300 requests have been received for residential property clean up assistance in Charlottetown. Since the City began administering the program on Tuesday, October 11, nearly 380 site visits have been completed, and debris clean up work is underway.
To learn more, or to apply, visit charlottetown.ca/fiona or call 902-629-2594 during regular business hours.
Debris Pick Up and Drop Off
City crews continue to make significant progress on roadside tree branch and debris pick up efforts. City crews will continue picking up roadside debris work for now. With the City beginning its transition to winter operations, the plan and timeline for roadside debris pick up will be reassessed next week, and a further update will be issued about when these efforts will be paused until spring.
Where possible and if it is safe to do so, residents are reminded to cut tree branches into pieces four (4) feet in length or shorter and place them next to the roadway. To assist with the clean-up efforts, pieces that are wider than 10 inches in diameter should be cut down into pieces that are two (2) feet in length or shorter. Residents are reminded not to pile garbage or other debris with tree branches and stumps. This will slow the clean-up efforts and may cause safety risks to work crews and equipment as they are not part of the tree debris pickup.
Trails, Parks and Playgrounds
Since our last update, the following four (4) parks are now open to the public:
- MacMillan Park (16 MacMillan Crescent)
- MacPherson Park (57 Cottonwood Drive)
- MacLean Park (14 Cheverie Avenue)
- J Muise Park (Patterson Drive)
The following two (2) parks and playgrounds remain closed until further notice:
- Messer Park (3 Messer Avenue)
- Upton Park (21 Upton Park Drive)
Safety Reminders
Important and essential safety reminders include:
- Residents are urged to put safety first and stay away from areas where crews are actively working.
- Continue using caution in City parks, trails and wooded areas in particular.
- Open burning is not permitted.
- Barbeques and cooking appliances are not to be used indoors, this includes garages and balconies.
- Generators must be used outdoors and away from any building openings.
- Do not attempt to clear trees or branches away from downed power lines.
- Do not pile tree debris on the roadway.
Recovery Through Acts of Kindness
The City has launched a dedicated engagement page for the community called "Recovery Through Acts of Kindness" on its digital engagement platform Charlottetown Hall. Residents are invited to share community stories of support and kindness online at charlottetownhall.ca/actsofkindness. The online engagement page is a testament to the strength of the community and an opportunity to recognize the hundreds of frontline workers, dedicated partners and community members working on the recovery and clean-up efforts.