Local emergency crews worked overtime in Eversource’s absence

by Colleen Gundlach
Photographs by Jonathan Barbagallo

It was a storm to remember, and one that brought out the very best of the people of Norfolk. In the midst of incredible frustration, there was a spirit among the townspeople of working together to get through the inconvenient and sometimes dangerous situation.

As Tropical Storm Isaias moved up the eastern seaboard on Tuesday, Aug. 4, the emergency services groups in Norfolk geared up to be ready to help where needed. They were propelled into action almost immediately when, at the height of the storm, a call went out to the Norfolk Lions Club Ambulance for a sick person in South Norfolk. With winds topping 70 miles per hour, trees were falling all over town, and had already blocked Route 44 and also Route 272 South. There was no way to get to the patient, so the ambulance squad recruited the help of Norfolk Volunteer Fire Department (NVFD) and the town’s Public Works staff, and together they worked to determine a safe way to be able to open up some space to get through. NVFD was eventually able to reach the patient with their brush truck and, close to two hours later, delivered the patient to the waiting ambulance.  

In the meantime, Norfolk’s Emergency Management team, Richard Byrne, Jon Barbagallo and Darryl Byrne, had begun organizing a systematic survey of all town roads.  Members of the NVFD, the public works staff and other volunteers were driving all over town to assess damage well into the night, as trees and poles were continuing to fall.

By 6 a.m. on the morning after the storm, the public works department and the NVFD had begun work on clearing any roads they could. Downed trees that had wires on or near them had to wait until Eversource, the local electric supplier, arrived. Eversource did not arrive that day, the next day or even the day after that.

With Greenwoods Road West (Route 44) completely blocked near New England Miniature Ball, the state began routing traffic, including tractor trailers, onto Old Colony Road, a steep, narrow residential lane.  For several days, Litchfield Road (Route 272 South) was impassable to through traffic between Winchester Road and Torrington. Numerous Norfolk roads were blocked or barely passable. 

By Thursday, Aug. 6, First Selectman Matt Riiska was frustrated by a total lack of response from Eversource. “We are supposed to call Eversource  when there are situations that aren’t safe, such as wires on the road,” says Riiska. “Let me tell you, I have not spoken to anyone from Eversource since the storm began. I’ve called them and gotten canned messages.”  In an e-mail to Eversource, Riiska reminded them of the dangerous situation caused by routing traffic up one-lane Old Colony Road: “To say I am a little disgusted with Eversource’s response is an understatement. Our PW crew and fire folks have been doing a fine job of clearing roads, sometimes making me concerned for their safety, to make sure our residents can be responded to in case of an emergency. PLEASE make the area safe for our PW crew so they can clear the debris so Route 44 can be reopened.”  

Eversource did not respond, so the town took matters into their own hands, and the Public Works staff cut the tree and cleared the road.

Meanwhile, the Emergency Management Department (EMD) was hard at work surveying the damage and keeping the lines of communication open.  “We were basically the clearinghouse for information,” says Barbagallo. Members of the NVFD and other volunteers divided into teams and drove all over town, assessing road blockages and other damage.  The EMD staff compiled maps, complete with utility pole numbers and house numbers that were affected.  “Everything was done in-house,” says Barbagallo. “and it has paid dividends. The Eversource response was woefully inadequate. When the utility crews finally arrived in Norfolk, Eversource had supplied them with a list of outages in town that was less than two pages long. We had compiled pages of places that needed to be addressed. Locally, we knew what we were up against, but Eversource had not communicated that to the crews.” It was on Aug. 9, five days after the storm, that utility crews were sent to Norfolk from PAR Electric in Indiana and Ameren Illinois Power.  The NVFD opened its doors and parking lot to more than 30 trucks awaiting orders from Eversource, and provided them with coffee, water, bathrooms and Wi-Fi.

Realizing that many Norfolk residents were without water, power or communication links, Barbagallo and Riiska set up tents with tables, chairs and charging stations on the Town Hall lawn. There, thanks to the building’s generator, residents could charge their phones and laptops, while tapping into Town Hall’s fiber optic Internet connection. Oters came to fill their water containers by the entrance porch. “People were there all weekend from 7 a.m. to eight at night or later,” said Riiska.

A hearing was held on Aug. 27 before the state legislature’s Energy and Technology Committee to look into Eversource’s response to this storm, and the company will also appear before the state Public Utilities Regulatory Agency on Sept. 8.

Riiska reports that one good thing may have come out of the storm. A very large tree right next to the Frog condominium on Greenwoods Road was in dangerous condition, and town officials were preparing to remove it. “I knew it was going to be costly,” says Riiska. “Lo and behold, the wind knocked it down. We got Guerrera Construction, who was replacing the water main of Route 44, to work with the Norfolk Public Works crew to lift the whole thing, including the ball, and put it into our trucks. So we got rid of the tree and it didn’t cost us anything.”