Tree Warden Recaps Last Storm
Greetings from the Tree Department
It was a dark and stormy night, to say the least. At 3:45 a.m. John Q. Public was driving to Fairhaven from Acushnet on Alden Road. At that same time the Nor’Easter that had been hitting us pretty hard all night ramped it up a bit and a gust knocked over a large tree. John was probably driving the speed limit or less and when he got to 350 Alden he found himself stopped dead in his tracks and fully covered by the canopy of said tree.
John somehow managed to extricate himself from the car and dense foliage. The police and tree department arrived shortly after.
The next three days are a bit of a blur to me now.
That was just one of so many things that happened during our bout with what is now called Wanda. This was a first time big storm for a number of town officials and workers.
I’m pretty low on the command chain but from my perspective the response was impressive and efficient. We all started a plan worked out in the aftermath of some much smaller spring storms. Those provided an excellent learning opportunity as this last one will be for a major hurricane should one hit. The emergency response best practices we all utilized will only get better as we digest what went right and what could make it better.
I personally want to give thanks to all of the town’s departments for coming together so well and working together during a trying time. The Police Department, the Fire Department, the Board of Public Works, and of course my two tree guys who came out at 4:00 a.m. in 25 knots of wind and driving rain, Mike Lewis and Joey Borges. And as well the residents of Fairhaven deserve credit for their patience and resolve.
I want to in particular thank the Police Dispatchers who were my only contact for the first several hours of the storm and allowed us to react in an efficient way. [Fire Chief] Todd Correia’s leadership did an outstanding job of bringing technology and personnel together to really get a unified response moving along at a rapid rate. Becky Vento in the BPW deserves a big shout out for her work and organizational skills as well as Vinny and his entire gang. It was truly all hands on deck.
Everyone really came together and I feel really good about the direction this town’s government and administration is going in. We still have a lot work to do. A lot of deadwood needs to be picked up and stumps removed. That will take quite some time.
Lastly I want to publicly acknowledge Brutas Cantoreggi who is the Head of the DPW in Franklin Massachusetts. A call went out to MEMA (Massachusetts Emergency Mutual Aid) and Mr. Cantoreggi and the town of Franklin sent a three-man crew on Thursday and Friday to help get roads open. Thank you Brutas, John, Jim, Brandon, Mike, Vito and Jared.
Let’s replant,
Don C. Collasius, Fairhaven Tree Warden
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