Davey Tree Workers Help Clean Up After Rita

KENT, Ohio – After driving hundreds of miles trying to beat the storm ashore, hundreds of Davey Tree Expert Co. employees from around North America are currently working in the Gulf Coast region most affected by Hurricane Rita. The crews were dispatched late last week and drove in shifts to reach Texas in time to ride out the storm.

The crews, some of them still reeling from their work on Hurricane Katrina, have begun to clear trees from power lines so that the utility companies in the area can restore power quickly and safely.

The crews, which are moved at the direction of the utility companies, are anxious to help out, said Harry Claypool, vice president of southern operations for eastern utility services. “Davey employees are known for their big hearts,” said Claypool. “Many of our employees have worked on storms before and know how much it means to homeowners to have electricity again.”

In fact, Davey employees were among those in the storm’s path, said Jim Stief, vice president, central, southern and western operations for residential services. “Most of our employees from the Houston residential/commercial tree care and large tree moving offices evacuated,” he said. “Some decided to stay and sent their families inland.”

To help the crews keep safe in such stressful working conditions, Davey safety representatives also were dispatched to the area. The representatives will encourage the crews to keep safety in the forefront of their minds during the storm recovery effort.

Despite the difficult circumstances, the Davey crews are proud to help the area return to normalcy, said Steve Marshall, vice president and general manager for Eastern utility services. “Like many people throughout the United States, Davey employees are eager to help out however they can,” Marshall said. “We are also grateful to our utility partners throughout North America who have released our employees so they can do storm recovery work in the Southwest.”

The Davey Tree Expert Company provides tree, shrub and lawn care, large tree moving, grounds management, vegetation management and consulting services throughout North America. Founded in 1880, Davey has more than 5,000 employees and is celebrating its 125th anniversary this year.