November 8, 2012
Hurricane Sandy Aftermath
After a tough few days, Colchester made it through Hurricane Sandy. Although we had power outages and minor damage, we are very fortunate that we had no injuries. The storm is a reminder that in the battle with Mother Nature, we are merely spectators and are at her mercy.
The full toll of the storm is not yet known, but many lives were lost and homes destroyed. Millions of people across the east coast lost power. Colchester experienced a little more than a 70% outage at our peak and most of that was fully restored by the end of the week. We are very fortunate that we were able to recover quickly and move on with our lives. I ask everyone to keep those still recovering in your thoughts.
Please continuously check the town’s website at www.colchesterct.gov to find resources on how you or your business can apply for disaster assistance from the federal government. There are resources to help in the recovery and FEMA has a great track record of helping Colchester.
I want to thank everyone for your patience and understanding while we opened the roads and worked with CL&P to restore power. The impact of this storm was tremendous across multiple states and I believe Colchester came through in good shape. Many of you opened your homes to neighbors without power which is what a true community does.
I also want to thank a number of groups that were instrumental in responding to this emergency. First and foremost, the staff and volunteers at the Colchester-Hayward Volunteer Fire Department were on the front lines during and immediately after the storm to make sure no one was hurt by live wires and respond to any other 911 call. The public works crew also did a tremendous job working with CL&P to clear roads. Our police department converted to 12 hour shifts and was working around the clock to ensure the safety of all citizens.
The first duty of government is to protect its citizens and many employees from town departments were pulled from their normal duties in order to provide support for the emergency response. Some of these same employees will also be working for months on the appropriate paperwork to secure federal reimbursement for the expenses incurred during our response. We also had a number of CERT and other volunteers respond and assist in our efforts. I can’t stress how helpful all of this support this was to ensuring a quick response and recovery.
Always Be Prepared
I was recently told that I have activated Colchester’s Emergency Operations Center more times in the last three years than the previous twenty combined. The various storms we have faced in such a short time span remind us that emergencies can happen at any time.
The motto of the Coast Guard is Semper Paratus which means “Always Ready”. Let these storms be a reminder to all residents to always be ready for these emergencies. I can’t tell you what will happen next or when it will happen. However, I can promise that it will happen again. Hurricanes are natural events that occur on a regular basis over time. My message to everyone is make sure you are always ready.
- Gregg Schuster
First Selectman
Previous Selectman Notes can be viewed at
| 