Area recovers from drenching Hurricane Irene

The repercussions from Hurricane Irene varied depending upon where one was as the gigantic storm found its way up the East Coast to the Northwest Corner. For some across the region, the predictions leading into the onslaught of the storm were overblown. For others, the warnings were followed by property damage, flooding, loss of trees and loss of power.  

The storm brought between 5 and 9 inches of rain to the region on Saturday, Aug. 28, causing high water and flooding. After some relative calm on Sunday, when town crews, state troopers, fire departments and local volunteers got out and helped with cleanup, the rain continued. As the winds picked up, more trees and limbs came down.

Flooding remained a problem on Monday and Tuesday, as water continued to drain down the Housatonic and numerous small streams from northern New England, where the storm had continued to drop more rain as it followed its course up into Canada and then dispersed.

Salisbury Selectman Jim Dresser said Monday morning that Salisbury survived Irene with minimal damage.

Dresser, acting as first selectman while Curtis Rand is out of town, said that as of late Sunday evening there were 132 homes without power in town.

Road closings were in effect in the Salmon Kill valley, on Salmon Kill and Farnam roads. There was a tree down on White Hollow Road, forcing a closing there.

Dresser said the town crew was also keeping an eye on Dugway Road between the villages of Amesville and Lime Rock (which are part of Salisbury). Dugway runs along the Housatonic River, which as of Monday morning at 8:15 a.m. was running at 11,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) and was well above the 7-foot flood stage in Falls Village.

The river, as measured by the United States Geological Survey at the Great Falls, had more than doubled its flow the previous day, from 3,450 cfs at 8:15 a.m. to 7,300 cfs at 3:30 p.m.

In Falls Village, First Selectman Pat Mechare reported Monday afternoon that areas of town remained without power, with trees across power lines posing difficulties, especially at the intersection of Barnes and Undermountain roads, which were also flooded.

Areas around Beebe Hill and Johnson Roads were experiencing power outages.

There had been problems on Sunday with water across the road on Route 7, between Page Road and the Crossroads Deli at the junction of routes 7 and 63; along Route 63 by the transfer station; and near the intersection of routes 63 and 126. Those waters had receded by Monday morning.

Mechare said she had power and cable, Internet and telephone at her home “right until the last couple of gusts of wind.” This was a reflection of others’ experiences around the region.

The story for the Cornwalls was more dire. As of Sunday midday, 94 percent of   Connecticut Light and Power (CL&P) customers there were without power. That was a bit better than the 100 percent that had been posted earlier.

As of 4 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 29, according to CL&P, 95 percent (1,127 customers) in the Cornwalls had no power.  

In Falls Village, 34 percent (444) still had no power. In North Canaan, which was hit harder Sunday night by the high winds that came back around, 21 percent (314) had no power. Kent had 11 percent (234) without electricity, and Salisbury 6 percent (179). Sharon still had 21 percent (472) without power after a high of 63 percent without power on Sunday.

Since the state of Connecticut as a whole, however, had about 700,000 households without power at the height of the storm, the effects on the Northwest Corner might be seen as minimal. However, those who lost power Saturday or Sunday in this region had to wait to see the lights go on again, and to hear the sump pump draining their basements. Some were told by CL&P it might be a week before their power returned.

At the all-volunteer Salisbury Volunteer Ambulance Service (SVAS) and the Lakeville Hose Company headquarters, squad members showed up to man phones and generally be nearby in case of a call.

Many SVAS members were asked to stay at home, with their radios on, so they could respond to calls in their neighborhood in the event of downed trees. One of the ambulances was relocated to the old firehouse (across from the Patco filling station on Route 41), to be available for that side of Lakeville.

By the end of the day on Sunday, Aug. 28, the ambulances were still parked inside; no dispatches had been received.

Squad members Jacquie Rice (who is chief of service) and Mike Brenner (who is rescue chief) both took to the streets Sunday afternoon, looking for and assessing damage. At approximately 3 p.m. when Rice was at the Amesville Bridge at the Great Falls on the Housatonic River, there was a steady stream of sightseers on both the Salisbury and Falls Village shores.

The waterfall at Bulls Bridge was also a popular spot on Sunday afternoon. The rain had diminished to heavy mist by around 2 p.m. and there was a steady stream of cars into the parking lots on either side of the covered bridge there.Nearly everyone had a camera. Hardly anyone had an umbrella.

The water there was moving at a substantial pace, churning fast and furious. It was notably brown, not its usual dark green, thanks to all the mud and other sediment that were mixed up with the water.

The Housatonic River hopped up and over its banks before it reached the falls and most of Route 7 was closed on Sunday.

Kent Falls was also wildly swollen and out of control. There were no gawkers there, however. A state trooper was there around 2 p.m. closing off the parking lot and barking at all visitors to get in their cars and leave “Immediately!” Even the little brook that runs along the edge of the parking lot was a hazard as it swelled to many times its normal size, threatening to drown some trees that were in the way.

No records were broken this year. To find out when area rivers and streams were at their mightiest, go online and search for “water.weather.gov housatonic river”. Specify Gaylordsville to see numbers for Kent.

Patrick Sullivan and Tara Kelly contributed to this story.

 

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