photo by: Kim Callahan

This large tree in South Park was one of several that was destroyed in an early-morning storm Saturday. The storm brought wind gusts in excess of 50 mph, according to the National Weather Service. The trees are pictured June 2, 2018.

The city’s tree-lined parks and streets took a significant hit from this weekend’s storm.

Horticulture and Forestry Manager Crystal Miles said in an email to the Journal-World that more than 100 city trees were damaged in the storm, which brought winds as strong as 60 mph to Lawrence and northeast Kansas early Saturday morning. Miles said the city had responded to more than 80 service calls since cleanup efforts began Saturday.

photo by: Kim Callahan

A number of trees in South Park and elsewhere in Lawrence were destroyed by Saturday’s early-morning storm, which included wind gusts in excess of 50 mph. The trees are pictured June 2, 2018.

Crews from the streets, utilities, and parks and recreation departments have been working to clear debris from city parks, sidewalks and rights-of-way, including damage done to multiple trees in South Park and Oak Hill Cemetery.

City Spokesman Porter Arneill said in an email that crews have gathered more than 500 cubic yards of debris so far. In addition to the material collected by city crews, he said that residents dropped off about 260 pickup truckloads of debris at the city’s compost facility over the weekend.

Arneill said most of the damage from the storm occurred east of Iowa Street. He said some of the areas most affected included East Lawrence, Old West Lawrence, the Oread Neighborhood and the Stratford Park area, as well as Oak Hill Cemetery and South Park.

The University of Kansas also sustained damage. KU’s Lawrence campus lost 20 trees and approximately 200 tree limbs are down, according to KU spokeswoman Erinn Barcomb-Peterson. She said Monday morning that the lost trees are mostly on the main campus and within the Central District, and that crews were in the process of removing the damage.

The city has a list of licensed tree trimmers available for private work on its website, lawrenceks.org. Branches and other yard waste can be placed in yard waste bins, compostable bags, or bundled with string or twine for city pickup.