Community Pulls Together In Response To Snowstorm
To The Editor:
On Sunday, November 20, I made the very difficult decision to declare a State of Emergency for the Town of New Lebanon. [private] The winter storm had made several of the roads in our town unpassable leaving quite a few New Lebanon residents in a precarious position if there was a need for emergency services not to mention the dangers associated with the number of live electrical lines that were down in the roads. Additionally, this storm caused power outages to more than a third of the residents of New Lebanon.
It is difficult to express the full level of my thanks and appreciation to those that helped me during this situation. Bill Black, Columbia County Emergency Management Director, was available to me throughout the entire situation and was invaluable in helping me to learn my responsibilities and to get the assistance my community needed to deal with the situation. The Lebanon Valley Protective Association (including Gregg Gilliland, Ben Wheeler, Matt Larabee and Jenn Constantine) was also invaluable and available to me throughout the entire situation and made the New Lebanon Fire House a central point for warming stations and distribution of water and dry ice. Additionally, I wish to express my thanks and appreciation to the other people and departments at the County and Town levels that helped me to take care of my community during this situation including Matt Murell, Chairman of the Columbia County Board of Supervisors; Paul Donofrio, Columbia County Emergency Management; David Bartlett, Columbia County Sheriff; Captain Thomas Lanphear, Columbia County Sheriff’s Office; George Keeler, Columbia County Deputy Fire Coordinator; Bernie Kelleher, Columbia County Highway Department Director; Jeff Winestock, New Lebanon Highway Superintendent; John McLaughlin, Town of New Lebanon Highway MEO; Todd Hover, Town of New Lebanon Highway MEO; Kyle Kidney, Town of New Lebanon MEO; Pete McCagg, Town of New Lebanon Highway MEO; Herb Jones, Town of New Lebanon employee; and Pat Slattery, Town of New Lebanon resident. Additionally, there are all of the linemen that were out in the field trying to restore power under the most difficult circumstances and unforgiving weather. I am certain there were others behind the scenes that I am not even aware of and my thanks and appreciation go to them too.
It is during the most difficult times like this that the rewards of living in small rural communities (County-wide) become so apparent and so appreciated. We were truly fortunate during this situation that no one was injured or harmed; the power outages, while inconvenient, were all restored by late Wednesday. I know that without the assistance of all those involved, I could not have responded as I did to the needs of my community. It is a difficult sentiment to articulate but I hope my words of thanks and appreciation convey at least a part of it.
Sincerely,
Colleen Teal
New Lebanon Town Supervisor[/private]