Saturday Blizzard Blog: Tough Sledding

Saturday, Feb. 9, 2013

11 p.m. 

• National Grid said there are 836 customers without power and they estimate the power will be back on by Monday night. 

3:45 p.m.

• Gov. Chafee has lifted the travel ban as of 4 p.m. 
• The community "warming shelter" is Warwick Vets High School. The Town of East Greenwich doesn't have a shelter because, said Town Manager Bill Sequino, "we don’t have the volunteers, we don’t have the cots, we don’t have the blankets." The Town can take residents to Warwick. Contact the police: (401) 886-8640.
• If you are using a generator, be sure to follow these safety measures.
• The question on everyone's mind – those without power, at least – is when is the power coming back on? I don't that answer, but here's the link for the power outage map. I notice Cowesett looks to have been restored. That's a good sign, right? If I get any info, I'll let you know.
• The sledders have hit the hills around town, but the snow's so deep, it's the epitome of "tough sledding"!

11:40 a.m.

• Town Manager Bill Sequino said the town has not heard from anyone needing shelter, but Warwick Vets is open as a regional shelter. But, he said, "people don’t want to leave their homes."
• "The storm was tough," said Sequino. In particular, he mentioned the failed backup generator at the highway garage. "That’s really tough news – we can’t fix our own vehicles," he said. "We figure it probably got hit with a surge." Of town employees, he noted, "They can usually put stuff back together. But power helps."
• Sequino said they'd hoped to be able to send plow drivers home later this afternoon for a night's sleep before they report back tomorrow morning, "but some of them may have to stick around later than that."
• No significant police issues, according to Sequino, but "if you can believe it, we had one domestic arrest last night," he said. "Cabin fever."
• Safety tips: clear snow from vents (dryer, etc.) to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning. If you have a fire hydrant on or near your property, help out the EGFD by digging it out. 

9:30 a.m. 

• I caught up with the DPW team, who were getting breakfast at Swift Community Center after all night on the roads. The main message to residents: Please stay off the roads today! Much more plowing needs to be done, according to Highway Dept. head Jim Fogel.
• Bad news for DPW: their backup generator at the Highway Garage broke down last night. That means they'll have trouble repairing trucks. 
• Latest news from the Providence Journal is for those without power, restoration could take days: "Statewide, 187,000 customers had no power, said spokesman David Graves, shortly before 8:30 a.m., representing about 38 percent of the state. Transmission lines are a major problem."
• Mainstreet Coffee is open ... workers stayed next door so they opened at 7 a.m. Wow – impressive. By 8:30, customers were drinking coffee, watching t.v. and juicing their cell phones.
• Felicia's is also open. Felicia Revens texted me at 7 a.m. to say she had power so they're open. #not_an_egprob
• If you need help, let me know and we'll see what we can do. Leave a comment here or send me an email: elizabeth.mcnamara@patch.com.

Midnight

• The forcast for the early morning hours: Snow, which may be heavy at times. Strong winds diminishing by 2 a.m. Cloudy with strong and gusty winds. Temperatures falling to the low 20s. Winds north at 40 to 50 mph. Additional snowfall of 4 to 6 inches through 4 a.m. 
• Power outage are widespread. As of midnight, a large portion of Frenchtown is without power, extending north and south of Frenchtown west of South County Trail. In addition, a big area of Cowesett into East Greenwich is out as are large areas of North Kingstown. Smaller pockets in the Middle Road area are out too. Check the National Grid Power Outage Map for the latest info.
• For information from Friday, check out the Friday Blizzard Blog.
• Upload your storm photos here.