Wildwood will collect residential vegetative debris from Hurricane Helene on Monday. 

“We are feeling very fortunate to have escaped widespread damage,” said City Manager Jason McHugh. “The size and intensity of this storm carried an extra level of potential risk across the entire peninsula, and we are thankful we fared as well as we did, recognizing many other communities are facing far more dire circumstances this morning.”

City trucks will start collection of vegetative debris along city-maintained residential roads outside The Villages section of Wildwood early Monday morning. The debris should be piled into bunches no greater than four cubic yards in volume and must not block sidewalks, driveways, or fire hydrants. To ensure pickup, it should not be placed in bags.

Vegetative storm debris includes cut limbs, branches, fronds, twigs, and shrubs. It does not include trees or limbs that were cut or collected before the storm, leaves, construction debris, household garbage, trash bags, furniture, or normal bulk pick-up items.

Residents who live on privately owned and/or maintained roads should contact their property management or homeowners association for information on how to prepare and dispose of vegetative storm debris. Residents of The Villages should refer to instructions from District management and contact the District Customer Service Center at (352) 753-4508 or visit www.Districtgov.org for more information.

Wildwood’s police, public works, and utilities personnel were on duty throughout the night on Thursday to respond to public safety and infrastructure needs. Crews cleared two roads blocked by fallen trees to make them passable for first responders and the regular flow of public traffic expected to resume Friday morning.

Pumps were placed ahead of the storm as a precaution in case stormwater ponds exceeded capacity, but were not needed. Crews will continue to monitor levels as additional damage assessment continues and cleanup begins.

“Wildwood’s workforce is second to none,” Mayor Ed Wolf said. “Once again, our employees stepped up to go above and beyond to ensure the wellbeing of our residents. It is reassuring to know they are taking such good care of our entire community.”