RICHMOND, Ky. — Central Kentucky is continuing to clean up damage left from storms over Fourth of July weekend.

In Richmond, Camp Catalpa Park will remain closed for the foreseeable future as the city awaits professional crews to clear up to hundreds of downed trees.

In her nearly 20 years working for Richmond Parks and Recreation, Erin Moore has never seen storm damage this extensive at any Richmond park.

“The straight-line winds, for instance, on this tree — look how it just snapped it in half,” Moore said.

Around 75-100 catalpa and cherry trees were downed at the 30-acre Camp Catalpa Park in Richmond following severe storms Fourth of July weekend. Moore says many of the trees stood for centuries.

“We know it was park in the 1920s because the Corps of Engineers formed the dam out at Lake Reba at that time and these trees have been here, they set up camp here, they slept here,” Moore said.

Moore says many of the trees are too massive and positioned too awkwardly for city crews to clear.

“Our guys don’t have lifts or harnesses or the specialized equipment that it would take to safely remove that tree without hitting someone else on the ground,” Moore said.

The park remains closed and Moore says it could be weeks before it reopens. A timeline depends on how quickly a professional tree crew can get to the park.

“We have disc golf leagues and course here at Camp Catalpa, we have shelters that we rent out every weekend, a playground, access to fishing. A lot of people use the nature trails here to go and take walks,” Moore said.

While she knows the public wants to use this popular park, she says it’s safety first when exploring the woodland.

“There are trees that are leaning over on other trees and we don’t know the what the stability of those trees are,” Moore said.

Other parks in Richmond are open. They’ll announce on Facebook when Camp Catalpa reopens.

The city also has a storm debris drop-off site at 40-0 drive behind Madison Central High School. It’s open 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday through Friday.