Irene Only Lightly Hits Fredericksburg

Irene, while powerful, left the area without doing too much damage to Fredericksburg. 

A statement issued by the city of Fredericksburg says that the storm caused "relatively minor damage" and that the storm caused no injuries directly. 

The Fredericksburg Emergency Operations Center was taken offline earlier this morning and fire and rescue crews have returned to normal staffing levels. 

The city still has about 1,100 people without electricity. 

"Dominion Virginia Power will be working around the clock to restore power to its customers," reads the statement written by Natatia Bledsoe, public information officer with the Fredericksburg Police Department. 

Public Works Department crews will be out and about today to clean up debris from the storm, mostly tree branches on sidewalks and city streets. 

"The primary focus of the Public Works operation today will be cleaning the streets and sidewalks to ensure emergency access and the safe passage of residents and visitors," wrote Bledsoe. 

Starting tomorrow, the Public Works Department will be collecting storm debris that property owners set by the curb. Area residents can also take their storm debris to the Belman Road Recycling Center between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, weekend hours are between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m.