U.S. Army Corps of Engineers responds to local debris site concerns

Photo By Samantha Heilig | During hurricane recovery efforts in Puerto Rico, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers contractor mitigates the spread of dust by wetting the roadway at a temporary debris reduction site in Los Alamos.  

GUAYNABO, PUERTO RICO, UNITED STATES

04.26.2018

Story by Samantha Heilig 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers South Atlantic Division

GUAYNABO, Puerto Rico - The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has been tasked by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to remove an estimated 4.15 million cubic yards of debris, the equivalent of 1,258 Olympic-sized swimming pools, from Puerto Rico. The mission is scheduled for completion June 2018.

Of the more than 4 million cubic yards of debris the Corps has been tasked with removing, the agency has removed 1.8 million cubic yards of vegetative debris. This debris must be reduced in a manner that lessens the impact of the island’s limited-space landfills.

In the process of debris reduction, heavy equipment must be used to sort the debris from one location to another. The Corps will work with the contractor to mitigate dust and particles by wetting the roadway and vehicles to eliminate dust during debris transport to the final disposal site. The Corps has quality control personnel on-site and will work with the contractor to make every attempt to reduce or eliminate dust particles.

The Corps’ number one priority continues to be the life, health and safety of all who were affected by hurricanes Irma and Maria.

• Date Taken: 04.26.2018
• Date Posted: 04.26.2018 17:57
• Story ID: 274712
• Location: GUAYNABO, PUERTO RICO, US