“Today’s actually our last day,” Andy Ethington, 26, said as he walked through a warehouse in South Anchorage. “So, we’re just cleaning out all the trucks, cleaning out the storage room. This is where we keep all the chainsaws and stuff,” he said, pointing inside.
Ethington is one of 25 tree removal employees the city hired last August to tackle the widespread issue of beetle-killed spruce trees around Anchorage. Since September, they’ve worked seven days a week felling dead trees, and chopping them into free firewood for the neighborhood.
Pre-COVID, Ethington planned to work for the Forest Service. When his job was canceled, he tried finding a restaurant job. With the shutdowns, no one was hiring.