Residents in Parma dealing with flooding issues got some relief, as the city stepped in to help the cleanup process.
“I can tell you, I’ve been mayor for a little over 8 years, without question yesterday was probably the worst day that I’ve had as mayor,” said Parma Mayor, Tim DeGeeter.
It’s been a rough a few days for the mayor and the city of Parma. They were already dealing with the uncertainty of the coronavirus and the state’s shelter in place order, then heavy rainfall moved in Saturday.
Mayor DeGeeter says, “It’s a bad Sci-Fi movie that we’re living and then mother nature comes in and gives us a whack like that in northeast Ohio. It just makes everybody’s stress level go up even more.”
To make matters worse, the trash collection company serving Parma, Republic Services, has suspended bulk waste pick up and limited collection to cans due to coronavirus concerns. So, residents with debris and large amounts of water soaked, ruined items were left wondering what to do.
“This is a health issue. We need to get that out of her,” says Mayor DeGeeter.
The city of Parma has decided to step in. They have one trash collection truck already, but rented a second and borrowed a third to send service workers with masks and gloves to pick up bulk trash. The city is requesting that residents place all flood damage debris on their tree lawn for the city to collect.
“We’ll continue doing that until every piece is picked up,” says Mayor DeGeeter.
It’s been a tough few days in Parma and there may be tougher times still ahead, but Mayor DeGeeter knows that it’s no match for the toughness of his residents.
“We’re Ohioans, we’re strong, we’re tough and we’ll get through this,” says the mayor. “We’ll get back to reality real soon.”