Ohiopyle State Park officials hope to quickly clean up debris from damaging storms

OHIOPYLE, Pa. — The sound of chainsaws echoed across Ohiopyle State Park on Monday afternoon as crews worked diligently to clean up snapped trees, branches, and other debris after Sunday’s “high wind event” storms.

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“Today has been clearing some of the parking lots, going to start with the parking areas, the day-use areas, get those cleaned up,” said Park Operations Manager Chris Houck.

Trees and power lines fell on trails, roads, and even cars. One of those cars was still in a parking lot Monday afternoon with a smashed hood and sunroof.

One car that a tree fell on had people in it. They were rescued by firefighters.

The Natural Water Slides were closed to start the day on Monday, and Cucumber Falls remains closed as crews work to clear out fallen trees and make the area safe for visitors.

Houck said he’s thankful this storm wasn’t worse.

“Yeah, absolutely. If you look at the areas like Cucumber Falls, any given day, that parking lot is full, hundreds of people down there, there’s just trees everywhere,” Houck said. “The fact that everyone was able to get to safety without any major injuries, we are grateful for that.”

While the park said there is no way to prepare for a storm like this, there are things you can do to make sure you’re safe while on the trails if one pops up, such as wearing proper footwear, protective clothing, and knowing where safety shelters are.

“If you can get to somewhere, hiding under a tree is not great in these scenarios,” Houck said.

Visitors were pleased on Monday with how much work crews have done to make sure the park is safe.

“Oh, no doubt, they’re already at it,” said Jason Dornberger of Baldwin. “They’re already doing a great job.”

The park hopes to have the areas that are closed reopened and cleaned up by the weekend.

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