News

The 500 Ton Haul: Sturgis Public Works Rally Trash Removal

SDPB Radio | By Kenzie Wagner

Published August 11, 2016 at 4:15 PM CDT

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The usually bustling streets of Sturgis during the rally are all but empty at 4 am. That's when the City of Sturgis Public Works Dept. comes out to clean up the town.

Kenzie Wagner / SDPB

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Crews work to clean up the tons of trash created by the rally, they say the alleys behind bars are the worst hit from the mess.

Kenzie Wagner / SDPB

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Kenzie Wagner / SDPB

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Street sweeping is a vital task in the effort to keep the Sturgis streets clean.

Kenzie Wagner / SDPB

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The City of Sturgis postpones all recycling operations during the rally, save for cardboard pickup.

Kenzie Wagner / SDPB

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After a long night/morning of hard labor, public works crews gather at the Presbyterian church in town where they're given free breakfasts.

Kenzie Wagner / SDPB

The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is a weeklong event where bikers from all over the country enjoy scenic views, live entertainment, and lots of alcohol.

For the City of Sturgis Public Works Department, all of this adds up to about 500 tons of trash and other debris each year. The bottles, beer cans, and other trash would pile up on the street. But, the city public works crew works 22 night shifts in a row before, during and after the rally to get the job done. This small town workforce deals with a big city cleanup, meaning every worker has to put in extra effort.

SDPB’s Kenzie Wagner joined the city cleanup on the first morning of the official start of the Rally. She gathered voices of those cleaning the streets of Sturgis from Midnight to 5am and produced this montage.