Toppled Trees Bring Hotshots To New York

Photo by David Andrako

As the five boroughs watch for another tornado, the NY Times profiles the team cleaning up trees from the last time we were hit. Turns out parks commissioner Adrian Benepe was urged to bring in an outside "hotshot" crew to help with damages, and yesterday the Tennessee team (of 21 men and 1 woman) was cleaning up downed trees in Prospect Park.

The team of elite interagency forestry experts are called the Cherokee Hotshots, and more often than not are called in to deal with putting out wildfires.

According to the paper, this is the first (among the 106 hotshot crews) to come to the city on business since these crews started forming in the 1940s. One of them told the paper, “We were pretty excited when we heard we were coming to New York. This is pretty much a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” Or maybe not, at the rate we're getting tornadoes around here...

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By Jen Carlson in News on September 28, 2010 2:42 PM

Comments [rss]

Guest

This kind of thing happens all the time. Disaster cleanup crews are always traveling from their home state to capitalize on floods, mudslides, hurricanes, etc. I knew a guy in Florida who moved there many years ago when a huge hurricane tore through the Miami area and he made a killing putting roofs back on people's houses.

John L

Question is, how much do hotshots cost?

And is there nobody in the city or state qualified to remove downed trees?

grizzzly

FEMA funding is forthcoming for this tornado emergency, and all city resources are fully engaged clearing trees and debris on streets.

jaketaylor

So why not at least hire in-state help? There aren't enough unemployed folks in the city who can pick up a saw, chop some trees up and throw 'em in a truck?