Storm knocks out power and causes flooding
Dec. 23—A storm that blew into the region on Thursday brought with it rain and strong winds, knocking out power to some and flooding roads along the shoreline, complicating response to a fire in Stonington on Friday.
Officials from many shoreline communities said that the main problem was caused by the strong northeast wind blowing in the water at Friday’s high tide.
Ruth Peterle-Dzurec standing outside her home on Lindberg Road, Lord’s Point, Stonington with Gretchen and Paul Dzurec said “Our home was an isolated place.”
The family was stunned to see firefighters arrive on Friday morning in response to a 911 call. The problem for firefighters was that the home was blocked by water up to waist-deep.
Bill Murphy was visiting his mother on Oak Street. He noticed the smoke and decided to walk to the railroad tracks nearby to bypass the water. The smoke came from an unoccupied utility area in Murphy’s home.
He assisted firefighters to navigate the path to their home around the water.
Jeff Hoadley, Chief of Fire Department at Stonington Borough, stated that Amtrak stopped train service while firefighters walked along tracks carrying water cans and fire extinguishers to reach their home. Hoadley stated that firefighters took a Dzurecs rowboat to check the water depth and to make sure the road was not washed away.
Firefighters put out a fire in a utility room of the house and prevented it from spreading. Investigators are still investigating the cause of this fire.
High winds and high tides can create a ‘perfect Storm’
Brian Sear, Director of New London Public Works, said that high tide occurred between 8:30 and 9 AM. Sear watched as the water flooded Green Harbor Beach, swam along the Pequot Avenue retaining wall and eventually poured onto the road. Pequot Avenue was closed temporarily Friday morning due to the rising water. After the water receded the public works crews went out to clean up the debris and sand that had been left behind by the tide.
Flooding problems were also caused by the extraordinarily high tides in New London at Water and Hamilton Streets.
Sear stated that all of the problems we faced were tidal. We were three feet above the normal high tide due to the wind pushing the water upstream. It was like a perfect storm, with high winds coincidentally with high tides.
During the morning’s high tide, parts of Groton were also submerged.
Mayor Keith Hedrick of Groton said that Shore Avenue and Beach Pond Road, Pine Island Road, Jupiter Point Road were all shut down due to flooding.
Hedrick explained that the roads will be kept closed off until the water recedes completely. We will still have road debris and want to be able to clean them up. This is done out of safety and caution.
Hedrick attributes the reduction of power outages to Groton Utilities’ aggressive plant management plan.
School closings were scattered across the state after the storm. Groton and New London were among the local schools that announced cancellations. Cross Sound Ferry cancelled all departures due to the weather.
Norwich Public Utilities reported Friday morning outages because of lines down and tree roots on the wires in the city. The outages affected about 1,500 customers. The number of customers without power was reduced to 500 by the afternoon.
Early Friday afternoon, most areas had seen water recede by early Friday afternoon. With the possibility of wind gusts up to 60 mph, scattered showers could continue through Friday.
Friday night’s cold front will bring down temperatures and cause a flash freeze.
Because of the freezing temperatures, the state has taken measures to implement its severe cold-weather protocol through Tuesday. All across Connecticut, shelters and warming centres are available. To connect to shelters nearby, call 2-1-1 Transportation is possible.
New London has opened a walk in winter warming center adjacent to the emergency shelter at 325 Huntington St.
State parks are also being asked to be avoided by the state. Many state parks have been closed by fallen trees.
While public transit services are still available throughout the state, delays or service disruptions may occur on certain lines. Anybody who intends to use public transit should check with the operator to get the most recent information. Visit CTrail.com To be directed to rail updates CTtransit.com For bus updates.
Governor Ned Lamont stated that “we are expecting to receive another burst in high winds on Friday afternoon which are likely to cause many more outages.” “In addition, it is rainy and mild out right now. Friday evening will see temperatures drop to around dusk, and this could lead to dangerously cold conditions.” Roads will become icy when this happens.