An official press release from the Department of Conservation and Recreation.
~ More than 100 acres of park affected by tornado ~
Clean up of the 103 acres of Staunton River State Park damaged by an April 16 tornado is under way. H&M Logging of Halifax County has been hired under an emergency timber salvage contract to assist with the clean up of thousands of downed trees. Work crews from other state parks are also on their way to assist. At this time park staff is not accepting volunteer assistance citing safety reasons.
“We have been overwhelmed and amazed by the outpouring of offers from volunteers and the generous offers of equipment use from our community and our guests,” said Staunton River State Park Manager Josh Ellington. “At this point, due to safety concerns, we can only allow trained workers and contractors onto the site.”
H&M Logging will salvage logs for resale where possible running a logging and chipping operation in the park. Trained state park staff from around the commonwealth will also assist in the clean up efforts. The first crew arrives Thursday.
Once areas of the park are cleared of large trees and declared safe, volunteer work days will be held. Volunteers will be needed to haul and clear brush, rake debris and other clean up related tasks.
Rather than calling the park with offers of help, Staunton River staff requests that people watch their local media for announcements of upcoming work days. They can also get notice of these workdays and check on clean up progress by signing up for the state parks “e-newsletter.”
Staunton River is one of the six original state parks opened 75 years ago in 1936. Immediately after the storm Gov. Bob McDonnell sent Virginia Secretary of Natural Resource Doug Domenech and State Parks Director Joe Elton to the historic park to assess the damage.