New Canaan Patch: Latest Articles

The Latest from the First Selectman

Mon, 15 Mar 2010 14:45:39 -0400

By Amy Jeffries

2:45pm

First Selectman Jeb Walker delivered his latest robo call to town residents at 11:40 a.m. this morning with updates on the recovery efforts and relief services available.

An accompanying release reported that the First Selectman continues to be, "in direct contact with senior CL&P officials". Half of New Canaan is still without power. The utility is now predicting that 99 percent of the town will have service back by Thursday evening.

In the meantime, Walker urged residents to call 911 for all emergency situations. For non-emergency questions contact the Emergency Management Center's public information line at 203-594-4102.

Laurie Cantillo: Refugee from the Storm

Sun, 14 Mar 2010 21:40:00 -0400

Columnist Laurie Cantillo took the kids and fled to the nearest hotel past downed wires and flooding streams Saturday night.

By Laurie Cantillo

March 14, 2010

My kids and I are holed up in a Norwalk hotel, refugees from last Saturday night's storm that blew across New Canaan, leaving downed power lines, flattened trees, and creeks swollen over their banks.

After flickering on and off much of the afternoon, our power finally called it quits about 7 p.m. Saturday night. I good-naturedly broke out the candles, flashlights and board games, preparing for what I hoped would be a brief outage. As the temperature began dropping and radio reports projected more than 30,000 Connecticut homes without power, worry crept in. I decided to pack up the kids in the height of the storm and head for a hotel.

We threw an overnight bag in the car and were off on our little adventure. Getting out of the Benedict Hill area proved more of a challenge than I anticipated. Broken branches and debris were strewn everywhere. The tame little creek near my house was roaring. Homes along Valley Road were lit by candlelight. A barricade at the bottom of Turner Hill warned of trouble ahead and, sure enough, there was a downed tree blocking both lanes.

I switched to Plan B, heading south on Valley Road, where I encountered broken yellow police tape fluttering in the breeze. Headlights revealed a large tree across the road. My heart skipped a beat as I noticed a broken power line snaking in the dark, alarmingly close to my front tire. I backed up, turned around, and flashed my lights to warn other drivers. I called 911 to report the hazard to a harried dispatcher.

We finally found a way out of New Canaan through Wilton, my car rocked by cross winds much of the way.

On my Blackberry this morning came news that New Canaan schools would be closed Monday, prompting whoops of joy from my boys who hadn't done their homework yet.

Returning to check on my home Sunday proved an even greater challenge than the windy trek the previous night. I was stunned by the number of downed trees on the Merritt Parkway between exits 38 and 39, ripped by their roots and tossed like kindling along the roadside.

Near highways 123 and 106 was an intersection with a tree precariously balanced on top of power lines. Turner Hill was still barricaded, so I ventured north on Laurel, where I encountered the now-familiar scene of downed lines and trees making passage impossible. Ditto for Huckleberry Hill Road, with lines menacingly strewn across the pavement and no sign of a utility crew. I backtracked to Rt 106 through Wilton, marvelling at swollen creeks and flooded yards along the way.

My house had no damage, thankfully, but the temperature inside was 52 degrees, and of course there was no phone service or cell service. Electrical lines to the house drooped up the hill. I packed more clothes for an extended stay.

A surprising number of residents ventured from their homes like war survivors, surveying the damage and tossing broken limbs from their driveways and the roadways. My neighborhood was filled with walkers and joggers; even video-deprived kids were out and about.

Connecticut Light & Power has a recording that states there is no projection as to when power will be restored. When I reached a weary human operator I was told it could be at least Tuesday. The operator hung up, telling me to "have a nice day".

My kids are happily playing "Marco Polo" and getting webbed toes in the hotel swimming pool on this unexpected storm day. Meanwhile, the lobby continues to fill with refugees with similar stories of the storm of 2010.

Do you have a storm story to tell? E-mail amy@patch.com.

March (Hockey) Madness Continues for Rams

Sun, 14 Mar 2010 15:14:01 -0400

New Canaan is into the state tournament semis with shutout of North Haven.

By Bob Goldsholl

March 14, 2010

The New Canaan Rams are in the "Final Four" of the CIAC Hockey Tournament. The Rams beat North Haven on Saturday afternoon 4-0 with Andrew Leslie leading the way with two goals in the third period—both in four-on-four situations.

"This was a blue-collar and now we're we wanted to be, " said Leslie.

"It wasn't pretty today but more of a case of hard work paying off," said line-mate Sam Stanton.

The Rams scored their first goal on a power play in the opening period when Tim Robustelli scored on a rebound of a Kris Nugent shot. "Robo" was in perfect position when the puck came out front and he wasted no time in giving New Canaan a 1-0 lead.

In the second period, the Rams scored on another power play. Leslie shot from the right dot and Stanton re-directed it into the goal for a 2-0 lead after two.

New Canaan picked up its forecheck in the third period and scored two more goals. Leslie got his first with both teams down a man when he intercepted a pass deep in the Indians' zone when he found a small window top shelf and made it 3-0 early in the period. Leslie found a small window top shelf and hit his target.

With just over two minutes left Leslie ended the scoring with an assist from Kris Nugent for the 4-0 final.

The Rams defense was taking care of business as they've done all season and when North Haven did manage to get some quality scoring opportunities, Tim Nowacki turned them away—he was 22 for 22 on the night.

New Canaan heads to a semifinal round game with Fairfield Prep, 4-0 winners over Ridgefield in another quarterfinal game. The Rams could find themselves facing rival Darien again in the final—the Blue Wave surpassed Tri-Town 6-0 and will play will play Hamden (7-3 winners over Notre Dame of Fairfield) in the semis. Both semifinal games will be played at the Ingalls Rink at Yale on Wednesday night.

KEY STATS

Scoring:

1st Period

New Canaan—Robustelli (pp) from Nugent at 9:55

2nd Period

New Canaan—Stanton (pp) from Leslie at 11:30

3rd Period

New Canaan—Leslie (unassisted) at 2:40; Leslie from Nugent at 12:57

From the Fire Marshal: Power Out, Detectors On

Sun, 14 Mar 2010 14:33:16 -0400

Fire Marshal Fred Baker offers power outage safety tips.

March 14, 2010

During time of prolonged power outages, it is more critical than ever to have operating smoke detectors and CO detectors in your home. Just this morning the New Canaan Fire Department responded to a fire in a crawl space that was caused by a fireplace that was being used to keep the home warm.

When power is lost many people turn to fire in the form of fireplaces and candles to get us through. Of course this creates an increased risk of fire from accidental, unintended contact with combustibles.

Always keep candles on tip-resistant bases and away form any combustibles. Never leave candles burning unattended. Always use a fireplace screen to keep embers from flying.

When it comes to keeping warm, make sure whatever form you choose is used properly and in accordance with all manufacturers instructions. Never burn charcoal in an indoor fire place or bring a gas grill indoors. Using your gas stove or oven to heat your home can prove deadly if too much oxygen is consumed which in turn will cause deadly carbon monoxide to be produced.

Fred Baker is New Canaan's Fire Marshal. For additional information about how to keep your home safe through the storm please contact the New Canaan Fire Marshal's Office at 203-594-3030.

Storm Shuts Power, Roads, and Schools

Sun, 14 Mar 2010 13:14:38 -0400

Power's out all over town, roads are blocked, and schools will be closed tomorrow.

March 14, 2010

"It's really in CL&P's hands at this point," New Canaan Emergency Management Director David Jonker said Sunday evening.

While the Tree Warden and the Highway Department had been working to clear downed trees, Jonker said the "vast majority" involve power lines and Connecticut Light & Power has to do the untangling.

Jonker said CL&P crews had been working in New Canaan all day, but with the scope of the damage not only here but in surrounding towns too, the utility was still shorthanded.

"They're calling crews in from as far away as Ohio to deal with this," he said.

About 150 streets, Jonker estimated, have been impeded by trees or dangling wires. As long as roads are impassible the school buses won't be running.

"It will be hard to open the schools until the roads are cleared."

Both public and private schools will be closed Monday. Depending on the pace of the clean-up, town officials may decide to keep them closed Tuesday.

And, of course, the downed wires mean that much of the town is without power—as of 9:05 p.m. Sunday CL&P still listed 4,463 local customers, more than half of New Canaan, with interrupted service on its outage report. With 35 utility poles needing to be replaced, the power company has told town officials that the lights won't be on to most of New Canaan until Tuesday evening. Some may be in the dark until Wednesday or Thursday. If you are without power, and haven't done so already, town officials are asking that you notify CL&P at 1-800-286-2000.

If you were looking for a hot shower at the YMCA you're out of luck—it's closed due to the lack of power there. The Lapham Center is off-limits with trees down all around it.

The library has power, and will be open Monday; it was mobbed Sunday afternoon as residents looked for a warm place to hangout and something to do. The Red Cross set up shop at Town Hall, which was slated to be open as a warming center until 10 p.m. Sunday night. Residents needing shelter should contact the Police Department at 203-594-3500.

Town officials are reminding residents to proceed with caution if you go out, and to refrain from using your cell phones to save the charge for 911 calls in case of an emergency.

Fire Chief Ed Karl said while the reports of wires down and transformer fires waned, Sunday firefighters were chasing fire and carbon monoxide alarms as power outages activate alarm systems and fire places and generators set off CO detectors.

Karl reminded residents to keep generators away from their houses, "We've had several calls where we've got [elevated] CO readings from the generators."

And he suggested homeowners call plumbers and septic companies for help with flooded basements. "There's not much we can do about water calls because our equipment doesn't pump down below eight or nine inches," he said.

For other non-emergency, storm-related questions call the police at 203-594-3500.

Send storm stories and pictures of your candlelight dinners to amy@patch.com or add them here.

Wind, Rain, Sirens, and Cancellations

Sat, 13 Mar 2010 18:01:30 -0500

Stormy weather brings down branches and wires all over town.

By Amy Jeffries

March 13, 2010

The Fire Department got so many calls Saturday afternoon that they had to call additional manpower to the firehouse. The reports of alarms sounding, wires down and transformer fires started coming in around 1:30 p.m. and just kept coming, with at least three dozen logged so far.

According to Connecticut Light & Power's outage report, more than 65 percent of New Canaan customers, 5,493 as of 11:05 a.m. Sunday, were in the dark (except those with working generators, of course).

Meanwhile, the state Department of Transportation posted alerts about wires and trees on major roadways, including some that shutdown the Merritt Parkway southbound between exits 41 and 40 B at 3:05 p.m. and northbound between exits 34 and 35 at 4:46 p.m.

The National Weather Service cautioned that the damaging winds and pelting rain would continue through the night—a high wind warning was in effect until 1 a.m. Sunday and a flood watch is in effect through Saturday evening.

With all that in mind, a number of weekend activities have been cancelled or postponed:

Metro-North is busing New Canaan branch passengers through Sunday afternoon, due to residual effects from last night's storm.
The YMCA has closed after the power went out there; Middle School Madness scheduled for Saturday evening was cancelled.
Saturday's performance of The Mystery of Edwin Drood at New Canaan High School was postponed until Monday, March 15, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets from Saturday night's show will be honored Monday. (Tickets will also be on sale at the high school lobby Monday from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.).
The Nature Center's Syrup Sunday and Pancake Brunch scheduled for Sunday was postponed until March 21 when it will be held from noon to 3 p.m.

Stay home and stay safe.

If a big tree has come down in your neighborhood, e-mail pictures and storm pics to amy@patch.com or add them here.

NCHS Courant: Muderers' Ad Campaign

Sat, 13 Mar 2010 09:39:16 -0500

The Drama Department puts together its most innovative PR scheme yet to promote its who-done-it production.

March 13, 2010

To build excitement for its upcoming production of The Mystery of Edwin Drood. For the first time, the Department has worked with NCTV to produce nine commercials in which eight faculty members act, as leading players in the show "murder" them one by one.

Check view the ads at nchscourant.com.

Rams Fans on Notice

Sat, 13 Mar 2010 09:17:42 -0500

CIAC warns New Canaan's student cheering section to be nice.

By Laurie Cantillo

March 13, 2010

New Canaan High School Principal Tony Pavia is putting students on ice for what he calls "inappropriate" behavior at last Saturday night's FCIAC Championship Hockey Game, in which the Rams stomped Ridgefield 6-1.

In a "Dear Rams" letter sent to students and copied to parents, Pavia laments a "troubling and embarrassing development" that's come in the form of a stern warning from the CIAC. The state athletic conference, Pavia relates, has told New Canaan that for the balance of the tournament, "upon the first incident of negative, obscene, or inappropriate chants, the entire student section will be ejected from the arena" with no first warning.

In other words, the CIAC means business.

I wasn't at the game last Saturday, so I turned to the supreme authority on all things Rams—Patch sports reporter Bob Goldsholl—for his take.

Goldsholl, himself a former star athlete, has a long history of covering heated NCHS sports contests. Of course, New Canaan-Darien is the mother-of-all-rivalries, though Goldsholl says New Canaan-Greenwich and Darien-Greenwich are always interesting, and New Canaan-Ridgefield (which was on display last Saturday) is gaining in the rivalry ranks.

Goldsholl didn't observe anything too wacky at the FCIAC final, though his disclaimer is that he wasn't sitting near the student section, while Principal Pavia was within earshot of the New Canaan rowdies. While Goldsholl heard the usual taunts and jeers aimed at the Tigers, he didn't hear chants of a not-so-nice word that begins with F and rhymes with a common water fowl. This has, our sports reporter related matter-of-factly, occurred on at least one occasion earlier in the season, with Darien being the culprit.

Unless Goldsholl took an ill-timed potty break or needs his hearing checked, it doesn't appear that anything too shocking happened at Saturday night's showdown on ice.

"It was a pretty ordinary game," according to Goldsholl.

I don't know what passes for "ordinary" at a hockey game in New Canaan, but when I lived in the Midwest it wasn't uncommon to see bare-chested cheeseheads and dead animals being hurled onto the ice in the name of good, clean fun. In Wisconsin they don't talk about a hockey game breaking out at the fight without good reason.

My Friday phone call to Principal Pavia went unreturned (as I suspected it would) after I revealed the nature of my call to a suspicious secretary. My sources within the student body at New Canaan were also tight-lipped about what occurred.

A video clip of the final minute of the game on New Canaan Patch provided no evidence of obnoxious fans, though I thought the Rams' victory dog-pile at the buzzer could be construed by some as aberrant behavior.

The Picture of the Week

Sat, 13 Mar 2010 05:09:00 -0500

The best shot taken this week in our little town.

March 13, 2010

A peek at spring, caught in this week's "Picture of the Week".

A new picture of life and goings-on here in New Canaan is added to this album each Saturday. Did you snap a telling photo this week or see a stunning image someone else took? E-mail amy@patch.com to submit your nominations.

Fire Log: Pesky Leak; Handful of Other Calls

Fri, 12 Mar 2010 17:56:07 -0500

Not too many sirens in the past week.

By Amy Jeffries

March 12, 2010

Persistent Gasoline Problem:

The Fire Department got two more calls from a house on White Birch Road reporting the smell of gasoline and a film over a nearby brook Tuesday and Wednesday morning this week. The state Department of Environmental Protection has been monitoring a leak from the Mobil Station near exit 37 of the Merritt Parkway, which is in the neighborhood's vicinity.

Accident Over the Norwalk Border:

New Canaan firefighters were dispatched to a traffic accident on New Norwalk Road near Carter Street at 5:16 p.m. Sunday, March 7, but it turned out the incident had occurred on the Norwalk side of the street. NCFD stayed on the scene until Norwalk emergency services arrived.

False Alarms—3:

Firefighters responded to three false or malfunctioning alarms over the past week including one at West School at 10:44 a.m. Wednesday, March 10, when contractors accidentally set off the alarm. The alarm at the Silvermine Guild Arts Center malfunctioned Saturday, March 6.

A fourth fire alarm at a house on Marvin Ridge Road Friday, March 12, also proved unfounded.

When firefighters metered the air at a house on Country Club Road Tuesday, March 9, where the carbon monoxide alarm had sounded, no elevated CO levels were detected.