Storm Sandy Leaves

Damage And Darkness In Its Wake

Wind Cuts Power

To Most Of Town

By Andrew Gorosko

Newtowners this week confronted the many problems posed by extended power outages in the wake of Storm Sandy, a hybrid storm that began as a hurricane and then transformed into a nor’easter, creating havoc as it moved along Northeast coastlines and then entered the mainland.

The intense storm caused several million electrical outages in Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey.

As of 10:50 am on Thursday, 72 percent of the Connecticut Light & Power Company’s (CL&P) local electric customers were without power. That represents 7,896 of its 10,906 customers being without electric service at that time.

On Tuesday morning, the percentage of local CL&P customers without electricity had reached 97 percent.

CL&P spokesman Mitch Gross on Thursday morning said the firm projects that statewide power restoration work will be “substantially complete by Monday or Tuesday of next week,” meaning by November 5 or November 6.

Mr Gross had no specific information regarding the completion of electric restoration in Newtown.

Mr Gross said that the firm has approximately 5,000 people overall working on the project. More workers will be added to expedite the restoration, he said.

Noting that more than 1,000 utility poles were broken by the storm, Mr Gross said that the repair project is addressing “big damage” in the state.

Both the southwestern and southeastern sections of the state experienced heavy storm damage, he said.

CL&P has set up a regional staging area at Fairfield Hills to organize its workers on the restoration project.

Statewide, the storm knocked out power to more than 600,000 customers served by CL&P and by United Illuminating (UI). The storm caused extensive property damage due to flooding along the Connecticut coastline. A major storm surge in Long Island Sound was whipped onto the shoreline by high winds. 

Newtown Schools

The outages resulted in local schools being closed from Monday through Friday.

School Superintendent Janet Robinson said Thursday morning that because about 30 percent of local roads still remained impassable due to storm-related damage, schools would remain closed on Friday, November 2.

Symbolic of the many roadways which were blocked due to fallen trees and downed utility poles was the intersection of Sugar Street (Route 302), Boggs Hill Road, and West Street, where CL&P and state Department of Transportation (DOT) crews worked on Wednesday afternoon to reopen the blocked Sugar Street to through traffic.

Traffic that normally uses Sugar Street was shunted onto a detour that included Boggs Hill Road and Head O’ Meadow Road, a long section of which is a narrow, dirt road.

Public shelter was provided by the town at Newtown High School. Normal electric service was restored at the high school on Wednesday night.

The town’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) at Fairfield Hills was the scene of a series of emergency planning meetings among town officials this week, as they charted the best ways to deal with the storm and its aftermath.

On Tuesday, Governor Dannel P. Malloy and US Representative Christopher Murphy went to the EOC for a meeting with local officials. State Representative Christopher Lyddy and State Department of Correction officials also attended the session.

Garner Correctional Institution, the state’s high-security prison at 50 Nunnawauk Road, had lost its electric service for time due to the storm. Electric service was later restored.

Correction officials said the facility was kept on “lockdown” status during the outage, which is a standard procedure. Newtown’s wastewater treatment facility and United Water’s well pumps also were affected by the power failures.

Gov Malloy told town officials that state resources were available and that his staff was standing by to assist the town if requested.

First Selectman Pat Llodra told Gov Malloy that the community appreciated his response and that she would contact his office if any needs arose.

In light of problems caused by the storm, on Wednesday, Gov Malloy signed an executive order that extends a filing deadline for residents who pay property taxes on a quarterly basis. The order extends the deadline from October 31 to November 15.

Town Public Works Director Fred Hurley said it appeared that Newtown had fared much better, in terms of falling trees taking down utility lines, in Storm Sandy than it had in either of the two major storms in 2011.

Town Emergency Management Director Bill Halstead said Thursday that on early Wednesday morning an electric line that had been reenergized on Berkshire Road, near Stonebridge Road, caused a roughly 100-square-foot section of asphalt on Berkshire Road to melt, resulting in a fire company response and travel delays in that area. The situation required a traffic detour.

Many trees fell onto buildings during the storm, he said, noting that in the Sandy Hook fire district alone, there were about ten fire calls involving trees or tree sections falling onto houses.

Mr Halstead, who also is the Sandy Hook fire chief, said he is not aware of any serious injuries stemming from storm-related incidents.

“We had a very good response from all agencies,” he said, noting the efforts of police, fire, ambulance, and public works personnel, among others.

Following the two major storms of 2011, town officials have been planning for situations as serious as Storm Sandy, Mr Halstead said. “I think we’re well prepared,” he added.

In view of the problems posed by Storm Sandy, the town activated its Code Red emergency notification system which keeps residents informed via automated telephone calls and computer-based messages.