© 2026
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Tornado Debris To Be Removed From Waterway

Preservation Massachusetts Inc

Officials in Springfield Massachusetts have announced plans to remove tornado debris from a waterway to enhance a recreational area. 

City workers will use police and fire department boats on Saturday to go out on Watershops Pond and snag the pieces of  wood,vinyl siding, roofing shingles, and chunks of  insulation that were ripped from houses and deposited in the pond by the  June 1st 2011 tornado. The area around the pond has been transformed into greenspace with a walking path and new footbridge. Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno said the city is still pursuing federal funds for tornado clean up needs

The pond clean up coincides with an annual community event tied to the national Keep America Beautiful organization.

The record-setting tenure of Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno. The 2011 tornado and its recovery that remade the largest city in Western Massachusetts. The fallout from the deadly COVID outbreak at the Holyoke Soldiers Home. Those are just a few of the thousands and thousands of stories WAMC’s Pioneer Valley Bureau Chief Paul Tuthill has covered for WAMC in his nearly 17 years with the station.