Wild Storm Knocks Out Power Around The County
by Doug La Rocque
The National Weather Service, and most of the television meteorologists, started warning everyone that some strong thunderstorms and high winds could develop Wednesday afternoon, October 7. They were correct. The front moved through around 3 pm, and by 4 pm power was out in almost every town in the county. Not only tree limbs, but in many cases, whole trees crashed down into roadways, pulling down power poles and lines as well.
Road crews were out into the late night and returned early Thursday morning, and by midday, most all the roads had been reopened, except in Pittstown and Grafton.
Restoring power however, was another matter. Effectively, the entire town of Grafton was still without power 24 hours later, with National Grid estimating it may be as late as Saturday before the town sees full restoration. The VFW/Fire Hall was opened for anyone who needed a warm place or water. Some significant outages remain in Stephentown where Town Supervisor Larry Eckhardt said the storm simply raised havoc with the electrical infrastructure.
In all the neighboring towns, some portions of the community lost power, while others saw their lights blink but come right back on.
Stores, like the Stewart’s Shop in Cropseyville, had a generator available, and the parking lot was packed on Thursday morning. The top seller was, without a doubt, coffee. Some other coffee shops that were open had lines at their drive throughs that backed up out into the roadway.
The storm was responsible for the death of a young man struck by a falling tree in Saratoga County, but no serious injuries were reported locally. The storm was also responsible for the one day delay in the printing of The Eastwick Press. It’s all just more frustration with the year 2020.