As Green Mountain Power crews restored service to
the last Vermonters left without power by the remnants of Superstorm Sandy
today, the company is making plans to send GMP employees to help bring the
power back on in devastated areas in the Northeast. One out of every five GMP customers experienced outages
during the superstorm. Power has been restored to 48,358 of 48,408 affected
customers, with the remaining 50 customers expected on as of Wednesday night. GMP
is sending a group of 70 employees, including line workers and support staff,
to assist other utilities in the northeast. The company has also connected contract line workers and
tree trimmers with other utilities that need help, and coordinated the
transition of mutual aid crews who have helped in Vermont to now help in other
states.
A collision between an automobile and an armored
truck on Route 7 in Middlebury prompted a big response from Middlebury fire,
emergency personnel and police. The
accident occurred around 12:15 yesterday afternoon across from the Paris
Farmers Union shopping center. Southbound
traffic was rerouted through the shopping center. There was one male patient involved, who was extricated from
the vehicle, and transported to Porter Hospital in stable condition. An investigation is ongoing.
Vermont authorities have found two offenders who
had escaped a work crew in Norwich.
The Vermont Department of Corrections says 26-year-old Christopher
LaFlam of Vergennes and 22-year-old Matthew Hinton of Rutland had walked away
from the supervised work crew at a cemetery on Wednesday morning. A total of 7 offenders housed at the
Southeast Facility/Work Camp in Windsor were assigned to the work crew. The two missing men were apprehended
Wednesday afternoon.
Voters in Castleton will weigh in on the
contentious town hall issue that has plagued local politics several times in
the last decade on Tuesday. It will be the second vote before residents in a
calendar year. On Election Day,
Castleton residents will be asked to approve two ballot items that would seek
money for the renovation estimated to cost $1.2 million.
Firefighters in Rutland Town are going door to door
this month to talk to residents about a proposed $2 million ballot item to
replace the existing fire station in Center Rutland with a new one. According
to the Fire Chief the department has outgrown the station and the new station
would provide more room for equipment and training. The second of two
informational meetings on the issue is scheduled for 7 this evening at the
Rutland Town School.
Green Mountain Power is exploring the possibility
of a heat pump pilot program in Rutland and is looking for input. Power company officials are sitting
down today with manufacturers, installers, lenders, local distributors and
weatherization and efficiency experts to investigate the potential for heat
pumps to warm the homes and businesses of some of their customers. The meeting will be held at the
Franklin Conference Center in the Howe Center from 8 AM to 1 PM today.
Work is scheduled to begin today on the Cleveland
Avenue solar project in Rutland. Green
Mountain Power announced Wednesday afternoon that the Public Service Board has
approved the 150-kilowatt development and that construction was to start “immediately.” Steve Costello, Green Mountain’s vice
president for generation and energy innovation, said the work was expected to
take six to eight weeks. GMP is also planning a 2-megawatt development on the
former city landfill property.
According to local health officials a second skunk
has tested positive for rabies in the Village of Keeseville. Rita Mitchell, principal sanitarian at
the Clinton County Health Department, said this makes three wild animals
testing positive in Clinton County during the last few weeks, since a skunk and
raccoon had earlier been confirmed as having the fatal disease. These wild animals, along with several
in Essex County, have raised the concern among public-health officials for the
safety of residents. For more information, contact the Clinton County Health
Department at 565-4870; Essex County, 873-3500; or Franklin County, 481-1709.
The North Country SPCA would like to thank all who
participated in making their fifth annual "Fashion for a Passion"
show a success! The event held on October 13th raised more than
$6,000 for the animals. You can
view pictures from the event at their Facebook site. The SPCA is also proud to announce that the new shelter
project is well on its way to completion! After breaking ground on August 15th,
the foundation has been laid and the walls to their new shelter have been
erected. The North Country SPCA plans to open the doors by the end of March of
2013.
The Ticonderoga Area Chamber of Commerce November
“After Business Mixer” will be held on Wednesday, November 14th at Inter-Lakes
Health from 5:30 PM until 7:00 PM. Sponsors providing door prizes will be
Alexander R. Shmulsky Attorney At Law, Glens Falls National Bank, the Wagon
Wheel Restaurant and Inter-Lakes Health. Not only is this mixer a perfect
opportunity to network but a chance to get an update from Inter-Lakes Health as
well as tour their facility. Learn
more at www.ticonderogany.com.
Amtrak is starting to run some limited train
service in the Northeast, but not yet in our region. Officials say a modified route of the Down-easter service
began Wednesday from Boston. But the three trains serving our region are not
yet running. The Ethan Allen Express from New York to Rutland and the
Adirondack from New York to Montreal are both still canceled because of track
damage in New York. And the Vermonter, which runs from St. Albans to Washington
DC, also remains on hold.
Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean has endorsed his
fellow Democrat Beth Pearce for state treasurer. Dean says Pearce will bring a
nonpartisan approach to the office. The pair appeared today at the Statehouse,
where he criticized Republican treasurer candidate Wendy Wilton as being too
partisan for the treasurer's job.
A 19-year-old Vermont man hurt in an explosion
behind his parents' Hinesburg home is facing federal charges he tried to
produce methamphetamine. The U.S. Attorney's office in Burlington says Jacob
Berino was arrested yesterday after he was released from the hospital. He made
his initial court appearance yesterday.
A Vermont man in the town of Readsboro has reached
his goal of finding the gravesites of 78 men who enlisted to fight in the Civil
War among the Green Mountain Boys. Tom Boudreau spent 15 years digging through
town archives of burial records and Select Board minutes, federal pension
records, newspaper obituaries, and other sources. Fewer than half of the 78
were actually buried in town.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo is pushing his agenda to protect
New York City from what he fears is a new pattern of violent storms, possibly
including construction of levees and sea walls. He says climate change requires
rebuilding the city to help prevent future damage like that from superstorm
Sandy. He said the massive undertaking needs to begin now.
The Knights of Columbus came out on top in the second
annual “Wing War,” but the Ticonderoga Food Pantry was the real winner. The “Wing War” pitted 10 Ti restaurants
to determine which one makes the best chicken wings in town. The event raised
$1,300, which was donated to the Ti Food Pantry. The Ticonderoga Food Pantry is
located in the First United Methodist Church on Wicker Street. Officials say they are entering
the winter in good shape, however they expect demand to increase.
St. Peter's Catholic Church and the Knights of
Columbus of Vergennes will host a breakfast on Sunday morning November 11th
from 8 - 10 in the newly renovated Parish Hall on South Maple St. The menu will include eggs, hot cakes,
French toast, bacon, sausage, and more.
Family and friends of all denominations are welcome. Adults are only $8; seniors over the age
of 60 and children, ages 6–12 eat for $6. Children under 6 years of age will be
admitted free and families with five or more eat for only $27. A 50/50 raffle
and drawings will be held for a free breakfast. Recyclables may also be delivered to the church for the
Youth Ministry bottle drive.
Now that most of the lights are back on in Vermont,
utility crews are standing by, awaiting the word to depart to help out in other
states. Governor Peter Shumlin
says Vermont could not have survived Tropical Storm Irene last year without
help from other states, and he intends to send V-trans workers plus other
assistance to nearby states once requested. Most governors say once they've assessed the damage they
will know just how much help is needed.
Another day, and still no Amtrak service to and
from Rutland. Amtrak says the
Ethan Allen Express will not be running Thursday due to track damage south of
Albany. The Vermonter service,
which is from St. Albans to Washington, D.C., is also canceled for today, all
courtesy of Superstorm Sandy.
However, Amtrak says it plans to restore some service tomorrow to and
from New York City.
More money is coming into the Low Income Home
Energy Assistance Program, but it's not from the Feds. The Vermont Emergency board unanimously
approved an eight-point-eight-million-dollar increase, since federal funding is
cut back as well as the stimulus dollars are at an end. The money is coming out of funds the
legislature allocated to cover the federal cuts as well as the home
weatherization trust fund and corrections. Governor Peter Shumlin says regardless of politics or party,
state leaders are not going to let Vermonters freeze in their homes.
Airmen from the Vermont Air National Guard will be
on their way to Afghanistan on Saturday.
Spokesman Captain Chris Gookin told the "Burlington Free
Press" they would not be involved in combat but will maintain military
aircraft and provide engineering support.
Governor Andrew Cuomo says damage to New York State
from Hurricane Sandy could cost up to six-billion dollars. Cuomo has written a letter to President
Obama and FEMA seeking the maximum reimbursement from the federal government to
help with cleanup costs. Cuomo
says the initial estimates of the six-billion-dollar cost come from lost
economic revenue in New York City, along with pricey restoration of severely
damaged subway and rail lines.
Recovery from Hurricane Sandy is expected to
dominate next year's legislative session in Albany. Questions remain on whether lawmakers will vote next year to
allow the cost of disaster recovery to be exempted from New York's property tax
cap. Governor Cuomo has said
recovering from Sandy will take more than just repairs, saying New York needs
to rethink its infrastructure when it comes to dealing with natural disasters.
From Fox 44 and ABC 22 News – Your Voice in Vermont
& New York:
Lieutenant Colonel Lloyd Goodrow walked into his
office Wednesday for one of the last times. "Midnight tonight I turn into a pumpkin," said
Goodrow. The thirty-plus year
guardsman is preparing to step down as the head of the public affairs
department. It's a role Goodrow
fell in love with. He didn't mind working with the media, no matter the story. "When you bump heads, you bump
heads and you move on," said Goodrow. Over the years Goodrow had to learn new ways to communicate
with the press. "We didn't
blast emails, we sent faxes and before the fax we had to mail it. To me the fax
was the most incredible thing invented," said Goodrow. Goodrow has also seen a change in the
guard. He says when he was
sworn-in; people thought there was a small chance they'd be called to duty. "Now you train because your life
depends upon it, because your service will be needed," said Goodrow. Goodrow's also witnessed a number of
different aircrafts come to the South Burlington base. He says usually the Vermont guard gets
hand-me-down planes, but that could change if the new F-35 fighter jet comes
here. "The fact that we're
considered for an aircraft right off the assembly line says a lot," said
Goodrow. It's not that Goodrow
wants to leave, he has no choice. A
rule passed by congress limits the amount of years he can serve in his role. But Goodrow says there's nowhere else
he'd rather be. "This
is where my heart is, this is where my love is. It's going to be hard to leave
this behind," said Goodrow. Captain
Chris Gookin is replacing Goodrow.
The guardsman has served in Afghanistan and Iraq before assuming this
position. As for Goodrow, there
will be a formal ceremony for him on Sunday.
It took a special panel of lawmakers but the vote
was unanimous. With higher fuel
costs and less federal assistance, Vermont’s governor says he just wants to
make sure Vermonters have what they need to survive. “Regardless of politics or party, we're not going to let Vermonters
freeze in their homes or make terrible choices between medicine, food, shelter
or heat” this year's "LIHEAP" funding comes from a few different
sources, including money already set aside and borrowing from the department of
corrections. On average, benefits
will be the same as last year.
A new TV ad is causing controversy amongst
Vermont's candidates for governor.
Republican candidate Randy Brock put out an ad recently that targets
Governor Peter Shumlin's personal life, questioning a recent land deal Shumlin
took part in. Shumlin fired back
Wednesday and says he's disappointed Brock would put out the ad. Shumlin also announced Wednesday that
he would like to serve Vermont for three or four terms.
