Storm cleanup in Georgetown — after the ice, after the wind
The tree's off the house and the driveway's open; now there's a live oak leader in the pool, a cedar elm across the back fence and a yard full of broken limbs. We cut it, chip it, haul it and leave the lawn raked.
Georgetown has had three of them in three years. Winter Storm Uri in February 2021 left about 30,000 cubic yards of limbs on city curbs. The March 21, 2022 supercell that put an EF-2 tornado through Round Rock and an EF-1 through Jarrell dropped trees across the county. And the ice storm of January 31–February 2, 2023 — freezing rain for three days on evergreen live oak canopies — left nearly 120,000 cubic yards of debris, took power from 3,700 Georgetown Utility Systems customers, and put a half-inch glaze on trees that arborists estimated added 7,000 pounds to a 30-inch live oak. The city ran curbside collection for weeks. Between the big ones, an ordinary spring thunderstorm with 60-mile-an-hour outflow takes a few cedar elms down every year.
Storm cleanup is the part that happens after the emergency. Trees down in the yard, split leaders hanging in the canopy, limbs on the fence, the pool and the neighbor's shed, a live oak with a fork opened but still standing. We prioritize hangers and anything still over a structure, then cut and clear what's on the ground, chip what fits the chipper, haul the rest, and rake. Where the city or county is running curbside debris pickup we'll stack to their rules if you'd rather; otherwise it all leaves on our trucks. Every oak wound gets painted the same day, storm or no storm, because oak wilt doesn't take February off.
What's included
Hangers first
Broken limbs still hanging in the canopy brought down before anything else.
Downed trees & leaders
Cut, bucked and cleared from lawns, fences, pools, patios and driveways.
Split-tree assessment
Live oaks with opened forks evaluated — cable, reduce or remove — before the next front.
Chip & haul
Brush chipped on site, wood hauled or left as rounds, big trunks on the log truck.
Painted oak wounds
Every fresh cut on every oak painted the same day, any month.
Insurance paperwork
Photos, itemized invoice and a written hazard description for your adjuster, at no charge.
Storm cleanup cost in Georgetown
| Job | Typical price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Yard cleanup, light (limbs and one small tree) | $450 – $1,200 | Half-day crew |
| Yard cleanup, heavy (several trees down) | $1,200 – $3,500 | Full day, chipper and haul truck |
| Hanger removal (per tree) | $250 – $750 | Bucket or climbed |
| Split live oak — reduce & cable | $900 – $2,400 | See cabling & bracing |
| Split tree removal near a structure | $1,500 – $4,500 | Rigged or craned |
| Fence-line and back-lot clearing after a tornado | $1,500 – $6,000 | By volume |
These are 2026 Williamson County ranges so you can budget. Your written price is itemized — removal, rigging or crane, hauling, stump grinding, any permit paperwork — and good for 30 days.
Recent work
Questions we get about storm cleanup & debris
How soon can you get to storm cleanup?
Emergencies — trees on houses, blocked drives — come first, then hangers over anything people walk under, then yard debris. After a county-wide storm we're usually on yard cleanup within a few days and we'll tell you your place in line honestly. Booking early helps; the out-of-state trucks leave after two weeks and the backlog is real.
Will insurance pay for cleaning up trees in my yard?
Usually only for the tree that hit a covered structure, plus a capped debris allowance. Trees that fell in the yard without hitting anything are generally on you. We itemize removal-from-structure separately from cleanup so your adjuster can apply what your policy allows.
Can I just put it at the curb for the city?
After big storms Georgetown has run special curbside debris collection with stacking rules — limbs under a certain length, no root balls, nothing in the street. Between storms your regular yard-waste rules apply. We'll stack to the city's rules if that saves you money, or haul it all so it's gone today.
My live oak is still standing but a fork opened up. Is it safe?
Not until someone looks at it. An opened fork over a roof is a hazard in the next wind; the fix is usually to reduce the leaders and install a cable or rods, and sometimes to remove one leader entirely. Our arborist assesses it and quotes the options.
Should storm-broken oak limbs be painted?
Yes, the same day. A torn limb is a wound, and in Williamson County a fresh oak wound in spring is an oak wilt risk. We cut broken limbs back to clean wood and paint every cut before we leave.