Virus adds challenges to tropical storm aftermath

Outdoor tables with power strips popped up around the state as most of the usual charging stations remained closed to the public, just one way the coronavirus has added some challenges to an already difficult tropical storm aftermath.

Residents without power generally head to libraries, town halls or community centers following summer storms to charge their devices, continue working and catch some relief in the air conditioning. However, most of these places have been closed to the public or allow restricted access since the coronavirus pandemic in March.

The Redding Community Center didn’t open for charging like it typically would because of the coronavirus and the risk of spreading it, but residents could charge at the back of the building near the generator.

“We are still in a pandemic and cases are popping up again in Redding and in towns around us,” First Selectwoman Julia Pemberton said on Facebook. “We are following best practices to keep our community as safe as we possibly can under these conditions.”

Restrictions were added to the typical charging stations that were able to open.

Some restrictions

In Bethel, only six to eight residents are allowed at a time to use the municipal center, which is open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday through Friday. They also must use the designated entrances, sign in and complete a health screening.

“Ordinarily, we would invite people in to use conference rooms and things so they can work if they don’t have internet at home,” Knickerbocker said. “We have to limit that very severely.”

Not many people had taken advantage of the option Wednesday morning, but Knickerbocker said he expected it to be more popular in the afternoon and in the coming days.

“It’s slow,” Knickerbocker said. “People are very cooperative. They understand.”

The John Margenot Atrium at the Greenwich Public Safety Complex was designated a cooling and charging station which will be open 24 hours a day, the town announced Wednesday.

Residents are asked to wear a mask and maintain proper social distancing while using the facility. The police department’s Citizen and Police Partnership Room has been designated as an overflow room.

Stamford will be opening Westhill High School as a charging station on Thursday. It was selected because most of the outages are in northern Stamford and it’s easier to socially distance. Most of the usual sites aren’t open or couldn’t accommodate social distancing guidelines, said Arthur Augustyn, a spokesman for the mayor’s office.

“Our Department of Health will be overseeing the charging station and will direct people to wear masks or socially distance as appropriate,” he said. “We anticipate the number of residents utilizing the charging station will be manageable without additional logistics.”

The cafeteria at John Pettibone Community Center will open to New Milford residents from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursday. It will be limited to the first 25 people due to social distancing and residents need to wear a mask.

The Odd Fellows Hall also opened a charging station, and the senior center allowed seniors to charge their devices during the day in New Milford.

Moving outside

The Mark Twain Library, which usually serves as a haven for those who lose power in Redding, has had to to limit its capacity and hours because of the pandemic, said library director Beth Dominianni.

“Once we get power back we will also set up a small number of power strips outside that people can use if they socially distance, and we can let 20 people in to charge phones at a time,” she said. “Under normal circumstances we serve this purpose without limitations and also extend hours if it helps.”

Chris, a Bethel resident who asked that his last name be withheld, said the coronavirus has made this storm personally harder to manage. He was able to continue working at the Bethel Library when he lost power two years ago, but this time around he’s unable to work from home, his New York City office and now the library.

While he couldn’t work on the computers inside the library, he was able to charge his phone at the station set up outside.

“Thank God for these lovely people,” he said.

Firehouses in both Danbury and New Milford also offered outdoor charging stations and private organizations extended the service.

Torrington opened a charging a station in front of City Hall during business hours. Residents are asked to bring their own charging device and limit their charging time to one hour. Social distancing and masks must be worn while utilizing the charging stations.

The Stratford YMCA set up an outdoor charging station under a tent with the two power strips set up far enough apart to let families using them keep enough distance between them, said Chelsea Kordiak, the executive director there.

They’re asking people to call ahead and staff are continuing to clean everything between each use.

Kordiak said this is the first time they’ve been a charging station during her nearly two years there, but believes they offered this service for other hurricanes.

“We’ve been a warming and cooling station depending on the season,” she said. “This seemed like the next step.”

Continued outages

As of 5 p.m. Wednesday, more than 615,000 Eversource customers were still without power across the state. Nearly all of Redding, Bridgewater, Roxbury and Washington are without power.

About 70 percent of Brookfield, 57 percent of Bethel, 50 percent of New Milford and 76 percent of Ridgefield still reported outages.

Eversource officials warned local leaders before the storm that restoration might take longer than usual as crews continue to adhere to coronavirus safety guidelines, including social distancing and more sanitation.

This storm also caused more power outages than Superstorm Sandy, with the strong winds causing “historic damage” and affecting customers in all 149 communities Eversource serves, said Michael Hayhurst,

the company’s vice president of electric operations in Connecticut.

“We recognize how difficult it is to be without electricity especially while many people continue working from home during the pandemic,” Hayhurst said. “Our crews will continue working until every customer has power back while also complying with stringent pandemic protocols.”

But Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton said the company’s response was too slow. About 42 percent of the city didn’t have power as of 5 p.m. Wednesday, about the same as that morning.

This is a problem because seniors need to charge medical devices, he said.

“This situation is getting dire,” Boughton said. “I’m worried because of COVID we can’t centralize people into one congregate shelter that’s air conditioned. We really need Eversource to do their job.”

Boughton said they’ve seen a “trickle of people” using the charging and water stations throughout the day on Wednesday.