From Emerald Coast Utilities Authority: ECUA is experiencing very high levels of household garbage, yard waste, and bulk waste items as a result of Hurricane Sally. ECUA collected a record-breaking 2,224 tons of waste the week after the hurricane, 49% more than the previous week (1508 tons), and we expect to break this record yet again with this week’s collections.
While we have returned to a normal collection schedule, we anticipate that collections will begin to fall behind by one day due to the following:
- High collection volumes (trucks fill up faster and need to make more trips to the landfill, taking more time to complete their route).
- The County’s contracted storm debris crews are also using the Perdido Landfill and all vehicles are currently experiencing significantly longer wait times to enter and dispose of the materials at the landfill.
- Some streets and roads (or portions thereof) are still inaccessible to sanitation collection vehicles due to increased traffic, debris, or downed utilities, slowing down the collection process or requiring a second pass.
If any waste collections are missed, it is likely that the truck did not finish its daily route. Be assured that the truck will complete its route the next day. In Escambia County, all collections will completed by Saturday. Collections in Santa Rosa County will be caught up by Wednesday and Saturday.
If a collection has not been completed within these time parameters, customers are asked to contact the ECUA Customer Service Department by calling 476-0480 or via email at customer.service@ecua.fl.gov. We appreciate our customers’ understanding as we work through the hurricane recovery effort and the greater-than normal waste volumes.