The Hurricane Zeta debris haulers in Biloxi, who’ve been working 12- and 15-hour days straight for nearly three weeks, are taking off Thanksgiving week as they approach the halfway point in picking up the estimated 200,000 cubic yards of debris in Biloxi.
“We know it’s never quick enough and it’s never enough, but these guys have been hard at it,” said Mayor Andrew “FoFo” Gilich, who noted that about 90,000 cubic yards of debris have been hauled from neighborhoods in Biloxi.
The update on the debris efforts, the latest on COVID-19, and a preview of Christmas in the City on Saturday are among the items in today’s video update from the city.
“We know that they majority of the debris was in West Biloxi,” Gilich said today, “and the goal now is create an additional staging site, in Woolmarket, which will considerably pick up the pace in that area.”
The debris contractor, Crowder-Gulf Joint Venture, a Mobile-based firm that helped move millions of cubic yards of debris in Biloxi after Katrina, has hauled more than 2,000 loads since beginning work on Nov. 5, eight days after the storm struck.
“Many of these people have come from afar to take part in this effort,” Gilich said, “and being off for the week will give them time to travel home and spend Thanksgiving with their family. They will, however, be back on the job at sunrise on Monday, Nov. 30.”
Facebook: See today’s report
YouTube: See today’s report
See the overall tracking chart
See the daily comparison chart
See the Harrison County 14-day chart
Mask Up, Biloxi (face covering required): Print your own sign (8.5 x 11)
See the White House and City Hall COVID-19 plans
News & notes: Mapping debris, Christmas, RIP Ray
Mapping debris: The city’s Geographic Information System team in the Engineering Department has the Zeta debris map up and running. You can see the progress by clicking here.
Christmas in the City: The Rue Magnolia area will be a beehive of vendors and craftsmen on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. for the annual Christmas in the City crafts sale. To see a video preview, click here.
RIP Ray: “Rockin’ Ray” Fournier, the legendary Biloxi song stylist and one of the original Rockin’ Rebels with Gerald Blessey and Co., has died. To view Ray’s love letter to Biloxi, an opus titled “Down in Biloxi,” click here.