PERRY, Iowa — Clean up continued in Perry Tuesday afternoon after strong winds swept through Monday night. The storm left significant tree damage and a mess in its wake.

“I didn’t know it was going to be that bad until I got in,” said Alec Burgin. “There was one lady who couldn’t get to her house this morning because of debris on the road.”

Roadways were left blocked, power poles were downed, and some homes and vehicles were damaged. Burgin, who owns a lawn care company called ‘Burgin’s Fine Cuts,’ said he jumped into action to help some of his clients around town.

He was not alone.

Residents worked through the day to clear debris before hauling it to the Perry Yard Waste disposal site, where a mountain of mangled sticks, leaves and branches had accumulated by late afternoon.

Luckily, city spokesperson Chris Cohea told WHO 13’s Katie Kaplan that no injuries were reported.

“Crews from Perry Public Works, the Perry Volunteer Fire Department, the Perry Police Department, the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office, and Alliant Energy worked through
the night to clear roads and free power lines,” Cohea said in an earlier news release.

Residents said they were grateful for the collective effort after experiencing a harrowing few hours.

“When I was getting ready for bed, it was blowing so hard our patio door and I thought stuff was going to come through it,” said longtime Perry resident Rob Tuhn.

Tuhn said he had to dodge branches strewn across the roadway on his 5 a.m. drive to work. After he got off, he started to work on cleaning up around his neighborhood. He was on his second trip to the city’s yard waste site when we caught up to him. He took a few moments from unloading debris out of the bed of the truck in the rain to speak with us.

“I just helped the neighbor cut up a big limb because his chainsaw broke down, and then I started cleaning up my own stuff and got it up by the curb,” he said.

The city said they expect clean-up efforts to continue for some time. Residents are asked to rake and clear small debris from their sidewalks and yards. They can dispose of it for free at the Perry Yard Waste Site at 14325 Ivy Place, or pile it near the curb. The city’s 2025 yard waste pick-up schedule is posted below.

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