Snow problem
Greenwich escapes major damage, digs out from big snowstorm
Town Emergency Management Director Dan Warzoha said the town received at least a foot of snow in the storm — compared to the 4.5 inches that fell all of last winter.
GREENWICH — After digging out from the first major snowstorm in nearly two years, the town of Greenwich is expected to return to normal on Friday by lifting parking restrictions and reopening schools.
The nor’easter slammed the region, with snow falling from late Wednesday overnight until about midday on Thursday. About a foot of snow was recorded in Greenwich, and other parts of the state got even more.
But despite the heavy snowfall, frigid temperatures and strong winds, the town reported no major accidents as a result of the storm.
First Selectman Fred Camillo had lots of praise for town crews that worked through the night to clear the roads.
“They did terrific,” Camillo said Thursday afternoon. “Plus, we are still in the middle of a pandemic, so they had to do things a little differently. Crews couldn’t go back to the town sheds ... to take a rest. They had to keep things sanitized and make sure everyone was spaced out and protected. Under
challenging circumstances, they really came through with flying colors.”
Many of the crews had to stay in their trucks for breaks, and they also had to disinfect everything before turning their trucks over to other drivers, he said.
Town Emergency Management Director Dan Warzoha said the town received at least a foot of snow in the storm — compared to the 4.5 inches that fell all of last winter.
“Downtown the snow seems to be less than the backcountry obviously,” Warzoha said. “We did have a period of sleet mix in early this morning around 3:30 to 4 a.m. that definitely battened down some snow totals.
Camillo also gave extra credit to the Department of Public Works for being ahead of the curve in leaf pickups throughout the town, making it easier to plow the roads.
Eversource reported no power outages in Greenwich on Thursday morning after the brunt of the storm had passed.
The town’s public and major private schools were closed on Thursday, with students and staff enjoying a “traditional snow day.” In neighboring Stamford, the schools switched the kids to digital learning days.
Town Hall was closed for the storm on Thursday but was set to reopen at 8 a.m. Friday. Other services in town, including Greenwich Library’s no-contact pick-up and programs at YWCA Greenwich and the Greenwich YMCA were scheduled to return to normal on Friday.
Greenwich Hospital also suspended its coronavirus testing on Thursday but was to reopen on Friday with all Thursday appointments rescheduled.
Josh Geballe, the state’s chief operating officer, said that while many COVID-19 test sites had closed across the state due to the storm, he didn’t expect a “major backup” in testing.
Gov. Ned Lamont said that more than 700 state Department of Transportation plow trucks worked through the night and into Thursday to clear the state’s roads.
Tractor-trailers and tandem trailers were banned from limited access highways from 9 p.m. Wednesday until 9 a.m. Thursday, which Lamont said was a big help for plows keeping up with snow on the roadways. Neighboring states issued similar bans.
“A tractor-trailer spinning out, gets out of control, can jam up traffic, can slow up snow plowing,” he said. “Takes a lot of cops to get that cleaned up. I think it made a big difference and allowed us ... to get the roads back up and operable a lot faster.”
Despite the travel conditions, Lamont said there were no delays of any COVID-19 vaccine deliveries in Connecticut.
“We got all of them over the last couple of days,” he said. “I don’t think there should be any delays.”