In less than 10 minutes an old, beat-up truck in the driveway of a house on Lamar Avenue was pulled onto the back of a tow truck and taken away. At the same time, further down the block, a second tow truck was doing the exact same thing to another vehicle on private property.

Neither vehicle was stored in a garage or covered shed, and did not have an up-to-date tag, insurance or could be driven, which is violation of a city ordinance forbidding abandoned vehicles on private or public property.

Overseeing the towing on Wednesday was Selma Litter Control Officer Mike Myers and City Fire Inspector Capt. Gregg Lewellen.

These two men are responsible for enforcing the ordinance and making sure their citations are carried out.

Lewellen said he often finds the abandoned vehicles through calls from citizens.

“I get calls all the time from people who notice abandoned vehicles in the city,” Lewellen said. “We are also told about them from police officers on patrol.”

Through the ordinance, Lewellen and Myers have the authority to enter private property and remove vehicles found to be in violation.

Once an abandoned vehicle is located, Lewellen and Myers place a bright orange notice on the vehicle with a clear message that if it is not removed in 72 hours, it will be towed.

“Once we remove a vehicle, the owners have up to 90 days to claim their car and pay the towing expenses,” Lewellen said. “After that 90 days, the wrecker service can do whatever they want with the vehicle.”

Section 1 of the “Junk, Litter and Inoperable Offences” ordinance defines an inoperable vehicle as in such as state of “disrepair, disassembly or damage” that renders it unable to be self-propelled.

The purpose of the ordinance is not only to help improve the appearance of the city, but also prevent an infestation of snakes, rats, or mosquitoes during the warmer months.

Lewellen and Moore, along with Code Enforcement Officer Darryl Moore and General Services Director Henry Hicks, also make up Selma’s Clean Team.

These men are also responsible for enforcing the garbage and trash ordinances.

Household garbage, which consists of disposable items from inside a residence, should be placed in a garbage container and securely sealed. Trash, which is considered limbs, grass, sticks, and other objects around a residence, should be stacked in a designated pick-up area and never mixed with garbage.

The city is hosting a town hall meeting about the trash and garbage ordinances and pick-up changes on March 22 at the Performing Arts Center.

For more information about the city’s Clean Team, contact the Office of Code Enforcement at 874-2106 or Capt. Lewellen at 874-2150.