Rensselaer County State Of Emergency Continues
by Bea Peterson
On Monday morning, March 7, Rensselaer County Executive Kathy Jimino declared a State of Emergency in response to the ice storm that affected many portions of the County. At the start 5,000 homes and businesses were without power and many State, County, Town and Village roads were impassable. By Tuesday afternoon 2,500 homes and business were still without power, and some roads were still impassable. National Grid and New York State Electric and Gas had most power restored by late Tuesday and expected to have the rest restored Wednesday.
A Countywide State of Emergency will continue through Friday, March 11, due to the anticipated heavy rain and possible ice and snow expected Wednesday night and Thursday.
Grafton And Hoosick Hardest Hit
Though power was out in Pittstown, Sand Lake and Petersburgh, it appeared Grafton and Hoosick were the towns hardest hit. Thus a Command Center was set up in the Municipal Building in Hoosick Falls. Rensselaer County Bureau of Public Safety Director Kelly Paslow was there all day Monday. An emergency shelter was set up at Hoosick Falls Central School. “We had many calls about it,” said Hoosick Falls Mayor Matt Monahan, “but no one used it.” In Grafton residents without power were invited to the Grafton Senior Center for a hot lunch on Tuesday, and the Center stayed open until 5 pm as a warming station.
Roads Closed
Wires were down and trees blocked roadways throughout Hoosick Monday morning. At one point Routes 7 and 22 were closed and Hill, Wilson Hill, Spicer and Bovie Hill Roads were all closed. The only way out of Town was over Route 67. Wilson Hill was still a problem on Tuesday, said Hoosick Fire Chief Bill Rifenburgh. Wilder Street in downtown Hoosick Falls was blocked off from Monday morning until late Tuesday. The top of a utility pole snapped and left a transformer dangling upside down. Fortunately, according to Mayor Monahan, National Grid was able to reroute power to other lines and few lost power as a result of that break.
According to Deputy County Executive Chris Meyer, Town and County highway crews often had to remove fallen wires and trees from roads before they could sand and plow. Some of those roads, according to Rifenburgh are still barely one lane wide.
Siren
In Hoosick Falls the siren started blaring about 11:30 pm Sunday and continued for hours. Sections of the Village lost power between 11:30 and 12 at night. Their power was restored between 5 and 6 Monday morning.
Others lost power between 8 and 9 Tuesday morning and didn’t have power again until 8 or 9 in the evening. Hoosick townspeople had power restored even later in some areas. Rifenburgh said one of the problems was National Grid had a main transmission line go down. Monday they called in a helicopter to find the line so it could be repaired.
Volunteers
Chief Rifenburgh said his department received their first call at 11:19 pm Sunday. The crew returned to quarters at 7 pm Monday. “It was very similar to the October 4, 1987 snowstorm,” he said. He expects most of the other departments and highway crews expended a similar number of hours. By Monday noon, said Mayor Monahan, the five fire departments had responded to over 100 calls. These calls were for downed power lines and poles, wires pulled off of houses, downed trees and basements with three to four feet of water in them. Often the flooded basements were in homes without electricity, and the sump pumps were off. Sump pumps and generators were in high demand, he said.
One home where the wires pulled off the building sparked about 1:30 Monday morning, but the fire department was right on top of it, said Mayor Monahan. There were few emergencies, the Mayor added, and Cambridge and Mohawk ambulances were able to handle them.
Jobs Well Done
“I can’t say enough good things about everyone involved in this situation,” said the Mayor. “The Fire Departments, the Town and Village highway crews and County people all went out of their way to see things got done quickly and efficiently. The County had the utility companies here right away.”
“We’ve had our problems with the utility companies,” he said, “but National Grid, Verizon, Time Warner; they all did a wonderful job.”
In a press release on Tuesday County Executive Jimino said, “Although the conditions have improved dramatically due in large part to the extensive efforts of the municipalities impacted and utility companies involved in the clean-up, there are still some problems that must be addressed. I want to thank all of the individuals from emergency responders, CERT Team Members, power company line crews, and town and County highway department employees who worked around the clock to limit the impact the storm had on residents.”
Though the storm wreaked havoc on the County, it was impossible not to step back and be overwhelmed by the beauty of it all. The trees were breathtaking with their crystal coats. When the sun shone on them, they sparkled like precious gems. Even though the sun was bright on Tuesday, the ice barely melted. It wasn’t until Wednesday afternoon’s warm temperatures that the ice finally dropped from the branches.