Six weeks after the derecho that slammed Eastern Iowa, many of the trees that fell have been moved to the curb. Some have even been hauled away. Others still hang in the wind, snapped off and waiting for their day to be brought down. Some have already been marked with an orange mark, signifying their days are numbered.

KCRG reports that the city council this week approved a $3.6 million contract with Jamey Flannery Trucking of Wisconsin to remove hazardous trees and stumps from right of ways in the city. As part of the deal, an arborist will examine every right of way tree in the city of Cedar Rapids. Before the storm moved through, more than 40,000 trees fell into that category.

City arborist Todd Fagan told KCRG that crews will walk down each street and look at each tree that was damaged in the storm. If the tree is still viable in terms of health and safety it will stay. If not, the tree will be marked for removal. Fagan said that they'll first concentrate on the core downtown areas before the first snowfall hits. Then they'll work on the other quadrants of the city. Fagan said that just because a tree looks o.k. doesn't mean that it will stay. It could still have damage difficult to see with the naked eye.

Fagan told KCRG it is difficult to tell just how many trees in the city will need to come down. He estimates that around half of the remaining trees may have to come down. Inspection of the trees will be done within the next few months, but Fagan noted it could take years for all of them to be removed.

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