North Little Rock cleared enough debris in Burns Park to open its youth baseball fields last week.
But most of Burns Park -- one of the largest municipal parks in the nation -- remains closed to the public in the aftermath of the March 31 tornado that swept through parts of Arkansas, including North Little Rock.
The tornado -- rated EF3 with 165 mph peak winds -- "uprooted or snapped hundreds, if not thousands, of trees at Burns Park, both north and south of Interstate 40. The tornado crossed I-40 just west of exit 150, passing over ball fields and recreation areas west of Military Drive. A new fire station still under construction was also damaged along Military Drive," the National Weather Service said in a report.
On Facebook, some people -- including one from Los Angeles -- commiserated over the destruction of trees that stood in the 1,700-acre park.
Timothy Wilson: "I grew up at that park in the late 70s and early 80s. It's so dear to my heart. I'll be coming home from Los Angles to volunteer and help clean up."
Nancy Crow Stanley: "The loss of all those trees is heartbreaking."
Susan Devries: "We were there just yesterday 4/10/23 at the NLR Animal Shelter picking up a newly adopted beautiful dog! The devastated trees is just heartbreaking!!"
Since March 31, workers have continued cleanup efforts.
The youth baseball fields are now accessible by entering Joe K. Poch Drive only, and people can exit the same way.
But Funland Drive, softball fields, soccer fields, the high school baseball fields and a section of the Arkansas River Trail will remain closed at this time.
The hospitality center is open to the public for debris drop off, which will be moved to the soccer and softball fields.
Five security checkpoints are set up around the park through Elite Protection Group to stop people from entering blocked roads. Maps are posted around biking and running trails to let anyone who does enter the park know what is off-limits.
Only four out of 27 tennis courts were damaged by the tornado, Parks and Recreation Director Steve Shields said.
The Arkansas Tennis Association opened the unaffected courts including the indoor tournament building, which now has power.
Shields said he planned to open the dog park next to the tennis center last Wednesday.
A "mammoth amount" of construction debris has taken over the softball complex's parking lot, he added.
An upcoming tournament in June will likely not happen.
Crowder Gulf, Dusk Til' Dawn and Hauling Away debris clearing services are working 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Shields said.
First, they collect fallen trees to be chopped up and put through a grinder. Then, the mulch is piled high for 18-wheelers to transport to landfills.
The weight of the trucks has demolished large parts of the park's roads, making it unsafe for other drivers.
Jason Rhodes, parks superintendent, said there's no way to have a timeline at this point for when the park will be fully cleared of the "magnitude of trees."
Recent rain and storms have set back progress and stuck excavators in the mud.
"There's a lot of places we won't be able to get to until it dries back out," Rhodes explained.
An area of concern for Shields and Rhodes to be cleared as soon as possible is the kayak launch along the river which is full of fallen trees. If it rains again and the river fills, it could push the dock from where it's attached on land.
A six-inch water main burst from a tree uprooting during the tornado near the RV Park, causing more flooding and delays.
One of the largest features of the park that wasn't impacted as heavily by the tornado was the golf course. The pro shop is open and the 18 holes were ready for golfers last week.
Terrain with fewer hills in the park allows for faster clearing, but the teams have yet to tackle the larger challenges.
"The mayor's first concern, obviously, is the streets and he made that known from day one, this obviously is secondary," Shields said. "But we're trying to open up as much as we can, as soon as we can from a safety standpoint. It's like Mayor [Terry Hartwick] has said, these kids have to have some things to look forward to. That's why we were able to do youth baseball and tennis."