Province of Mary, Mother of the Americas

Virginia Leveille, left, and Janet Millian, play a game of cards while passing the time away in the community room at the Wrentham police station Tuesday. (Chronicle staff photo by Mark Stockwell)

In what can only seem like a nightmare to residents so close to Halloween, thousands across the area remained without power Sunday night with no clear timetable on when service will be restored.

 

A storm system that moved through the area Saturday night, Oct. 29, 2011, dumped 2.5 inches of wet, heavy snow in Attleboro, breaking the previous October record of 2 inches in 1979, according to the city’s water department. The snow snapped tree branches and power lines across the area, leaving thousands of residents in the dark and those who rely on electric heat in the cold.

 

Shelters opened up around the area to help those in need and the darkness forced some of the harder-hit areas to cancel school today and, in some cases, even postpone trick-or-treating. With it becoming clear that power would not be restored Sunday night, and fearful that those who depend on electric heat would be in danger on a night with frigid temperatures in the forecast, officials opted to open emergency shelters for those who needed a warm place to stay.

 

La Salette National Shrine on Park Street in Attleboro opened at 6 p.m. to serve as a regional shelter for several area communities. The shelter was staffed with public health personnel from Attleboro and Norton and offered guests cots and warm surroundings.

 

power lines block a local street

Attleboro City Councilor Brian Kirby said the shelter, which was a joint venture of the city, La Salette and the American Red Cross, would remain open as long as there is a need.

 

Attleboro Mayor Kevin Dumas said Sunday night that, even though Attleboro wasn’t hit particularly hard, it still had a duty to step up and help those in other communities. “Our sister communities, some of them are completely devastated,” Dumas said, adding that the shelter was a way for the city to pitch in and help out.

Foxboro ran its own shelter at the Burrell School on Morse Street.

 

The storm itself and the power outages left in its wake caused several accidents around the area. Foxboro Police Chief Edward O’Leary said stoplights were out all over town, including at busy roads like Routes 1 and 140.

 

downed tree in the front driveway of the Hartford, CT, House of the La Salette Missionaries, New Park Avenue; these trees were originally planted in the early 1900’s

O’Leary said Gillette Stadium was pitching in Sunday night by letting the town use several light towers to illuminate busy intersections and keep them safer. Norton Fire Chief Paul Schleicher said that residents need to remain vigilant and not go near any downed power lines, as they could be live.

 

Officials said the bulk of the outages were caused by damage to the Union Loop, a series of lines that transfer energy from generating stations to local communities.

 

National Grid workers used a helicopter to survey the lines and look for damage to polls and wires along the loop. State Sen. Richard Ross, who sat in on a conference call with National Grid, said nine of the 12 lines that make up the regional grid were down Sunday afternoon. By late Sunday night, power outages were still rampant across the area.

 

Despite the tragic effects of an early snow, the beauty of nature endures

According to National Grid’s website, more than 2,300 households in Attleboro were without power at 9:30 p.m., about 12 percent of the city’s customer base…

 

The outages are a grim reminder for residents of the days many spent without power in the wake of Tropical Storm Irene in September. National Grid’s response to that storm angered area residents and officials, who demanded better communication between the company and local communities. This time around, though, local officials said the lines of communication were working better, even if restoring service was still a lengthy process. “At least we’re getting some better communication,” Schleicher said.

 

(reprinted with permission from the Sun Chronicle, Attleboro, MA, Oct. 31, 2011)