Preliminary damage assessment teams began surveying 12 northern Michigan counties Tuesday as communities like Gaylord are working to recover from an ice storm last month.

Federal, state, and local personnel will conduct a joint preliminary damage assessment for FEMA’s Individual Assistance Program. Teams are going door-to-door in parts of northern Michigan.

In Gaylord, Tree Tops Resort manager Barry Owen says they’re still cleaning up.

“Cleanup continues, that’s the big challenge, is the cleanup of all the trees,” Owens said. “It’s funny, not a lot of trees are knocked down, but a lot of the branches are knocked off the trees. So that work continues, but we’ll be open on May 1 as scheduled.”

Gaylord Area Convention and Visitors Bureau Director Paul Beachnau says they’re still dealing with debris on roadways, trails, and in the Sturgeon and Pigeon Rivers, delaying the opening of trails and river activities.