CHEBOYGAN, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – Jeff Potts is a tree trimmer in Cheboygan who has been in the tree removal business for 40 years. Now, when he goes out to work, he brings along his coffee cup as he goes around clearing the tons of branches – big and small – left behind in the aftermath of the ice storm that hit Northern Michigan.

A cup of coffee is sometimes all thankful residents can pay Potts for his services. Other times, the form of compensation is more valuable than money.

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“Another lady did have a cup of coffee and offered me a shower, which I did accept, because my bird bath at home was getting old,” Potts jokingly said. “My power was out 17 days.”

“This isn’t about making money,” Potts said. “It’s about giving service to others.”

The power is back on in Northern Michigan after the ice storm that began March 28. But the recovery if far from over. This week, the Michigan State Police, Emergency Management and Homeland Security Division along with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, U.S. Small Business Administration, and local officials will begin damage assessments in areas hit hardest by the ice storm, according to a Michigan State Police press release. Their work will help the state evaluate whether to request a Presidential Disaster Declaration and get that area federal money.

“This damage assessment is a critical next step to figure out the full impact of the storm on families, businesses, and infrastructure to get state and federal resources out the door as fast as possible,” Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said in a press release. “I’ll work with anyone to help Northern Michigan, and we will get through this together.”

Scott Atchison of Grand Rapids saw the damage first hand when he visited Cheboygan County this past weekend to attend a relative’s funeral. The priest conducting the ceremony said they would not be able to go to the cemetery because of all the debris.

Atchison said he saw piles of brush, tree limbs and branches as high as 15 feet in some areas.

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“It was organized debris,” Atchison said. “They took it out of the road and put it out on the sides of the road. If you go up there, you will see debris everywhere. It must have been a hell of a storm.”

Atchison said he spoke to local Cheboygan area residents who told him they couldn’t get workers to clear the debris until next week they were so busy.

Potts runs Jeff’s Tree and Shrub Care and his services are in much demand now.

“There’s still quite a bit to clean up,” Potts said. “Most of the big debris is cleared but there is a lot of residential mess and limbs in their yards. Little by little, they are trying to get it back to normal.”

Help was needed everywhere. Potts said his next door neighbor was blocked into her house because the storm debris had filled up her driveway. He cleared it for her.

Potts warns residents of what he calls “widow makers,” which are the dead or broken branches that are still stuck up high in trees but haven’t fallen yet.

“Look up, we tend not to do so, but it is so important for safety,” Potts said. “Many of those in trees either are just waiting any moment to fall from the wind or lodged between limbs. They have to be surgically removed by either a climber or someone who operates a bucket. These limbs are very dangerous and must be removed.”