Davey crews aid Hurricane Irma cleanup

KENT, Ohio — More than 1,000 employees from The Davey Tree Expert Company are helping with recovery from Hurricane Irma. Many workers even traveled from as far away as Maine and California to help with cleanup.

Now on the ground and working, Davey’s crews are helping to identify tree hazards and remove them to help power companies to restore electricity quickly.

Many of the crews left their families and traveled in convoys to their locations last week so that they could be in a place and ready to respond quickly after the storm subsided. While waiting for the storm to hit, crews reviewed safety procedures, prepared equipment and rode out the storm.

It's unclear how long the crews will be working on site, but many left to help areas hit by Hurricane Irma, knowing it might be weeks before they return home again. Furthermore, because the storm hit so shortly after Hurricane Harvey, some crews also went directly from storm work in Texas to storm work in Florida.

“We cannot fully express how proud we are of these employees who chose to help with storm recovery,” said Pat Covey, president and CEO of The Davey Tree Expert Company. “We are grateful, our clients are grateful and the public is grateful for their service. They will be working hard under difficult circumstances for many days, and, above all, our hope is that they come home safely.”