Storm lashes Provo again

PROVO — While insurance adjusters toured Provo on Monday in the wake of last week's violent storm, a second, weaker storm gave Provo's plea some punctuation.

A quick thunderstorm that happened between 3:30 and 4 p.m. blew branches into power lines throughout Provo, temporarily interrupting service for some 2,400 customers, Provo City Power spokeswoman Mary DeLaMare-Schaefer said.

During that time frame, the National Weather Service reported wind gusts of 48 miles per hour at the Provo Municipal Airport. An unofficial monitoring station on the BYU campus recorded gusts of 61 miles per hour.

Most of those affected by the storm, about 2,300 customers, were in an area between Utah Valley Regional Medical Center and 2230 North. DeLaMare-Schaefer said power was restored to that area within an hour of when it went down.

"Things are moving quickly, and we're back on track," she said.

The remaining 100 customers, who were spread throughout the city, had power restored by about 6:30 p.m.

Ironically, Monday's storm happened as insurance adjusters toured Provo to survey the damage from last Tuesday's storm, in preparation for offering the city a settlement. The adjusters will be in town through today, then return to Denver to calculate the damage. An offer is expected in about a week, Provo spokeswoman Raylene Ireland said.

If the settlement offer is significantly lower than the $5 million in damage to city property that city officials have estimated, officials at the Utah State Department of Public Safety may petition the federal government to declare the area a disaster zone, which would make it eligible for federal relief funds to help cover the damage.

"There are many factors in making that decision at the state level, and state officials want to make sure all the information is available before finalizing their response," Provo Mayor Lewis K. Billings said Monday in a statement.

Some of the damaged areas, including the airport fire station, were insured and will be covered. Other damage, including the roughly 500 city-owned trees that were destroyed, may be more difficult to cover. Insurance will pay for the cost of removing those trees but not replacing them, Ireland said.

While city leaders wait for the insurance check that will allow them to begin the repair process, however, they have enough to keep them busy as the cleanup process continues.

"I suspect the process of removing trees ... is a process that's going to take many days," Ireland said.

Residents who lost trees in the storm were asked to haul what they could to the city compost heap, while those unable to do so were asked to cut the branches up and place them alongside the road for city crews to collect. Ireland said public response to the request for help has been highly positive.

"When you live in a community like this, you're grateful when you're facing a situation like this because everyone is so willing to step forward to help each other and to help the community," she said.

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E-mail: jtwitchell@desnews.com