Recovery efforts continue in Beltrami County
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The National Weather Service has confirmed the severe storm that struck Beltrami County in late June was a so-called microburst. According to a summary survey conducted by the agency, the "microburst" created a 10-mile swath of destructive straight-line winds reaching speeds as high as 120 mph.
In the storm's aftermath, the county's landfill space has been operating at capacity.
"Some of the things that we are looking at is still expanding to a third and fourth site,” Muller said. “But right now our challenge is we do not have the staff to be able to get those other facilities and locations inline."
Muller said while everyday life is beginning to get back to normal, recovery efforts continue.
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“Right now, one of our biggest challenges is dealing with the tremendous amount of debris,” he said. “It's almost indescribable how much tree debris is needing to be moved from roadway and property. But it's really just starting to pile up.”
As far as tree debris goes, he said there’s not much value in damaged wood, although there is a market for it being chipped, which they have been doing with the tree debris.
“So right now, what we're doing is just trying to get it off of the side of the roads for safety hazards,” he said.
Muller added the county has also partnered with a mulching company that can take some of the debris. But he warned that as time goes on, the risk of fire increases. It’s something he sees as inevitable.
“There are millions of trees down. It would be impossible to collect them all,” he said.
Muller, who's worked in emergency management for 18 years, said the storm was the most significant natural disaster he has ever seen.
“Talking with a lot of the other folks around, and some of our longer-term citizens, they think that this is one of the largest natural disasters to hit Beltrami County,” he said.
For any county residents who need post-storm resource support, Muller said it’s available through Beltrami County Public Health. The Department of Public Safety will begin its initial damage assessments of the area after July Fourth.
