STONINGTON, Conn. (WTNH) While it was back to business in some parts of the state Wednesday, more National Guardsmen arrived in southeastern Connecticut, one of the hardest hit areas of the state.
Stonington is getting help digging out after nearly two feet fell on the town. Ten guardsmen were deployed Tuesday, and five more arrived Wednesday, helping get the town out of a state of emergency.
The Guardsmen rolled into town Tuesday night, and by 2 a.m. Wednesday they were busy removing tons of snow from downtown Pawcatuck. After that, they arrived at Mystic Middle School at 7 a.m. for another round of removal.
There are tremendous sized piles up there, so Im not sure if we could have done this without them, said Mystic Middle School principal Greg Keith.
Principal Keith says after the town got more than 20 inches of snow, the piles in the parking lot were huge.
Im seven-feet, so if the piles higher than me, which Im sure it is, it would be a nice photo, said Keith.
The National Guardsmen were called in after the Governor declared a state of emergency, making them available to towns that needed the extra help.
Were watching across the way and two of the trucks went down, said Stonington first selectman Greg Crouse. We blew a transmission, and another four-wheel drive went on another truck.
With two trucks down and the snow piling up, Stonington took advantage of the Governors offer. The convoy left town once the state of emergency ended. Stonington budgets $200,000 for snow removal and may have used up half for this storm alone.
This is definitely an extreme hit and its tough, said Crouse.
Stonington is the only town which has requested help from the National Guard so far, so the Guardsmen will remain at their base in Niantic, ready to go for the next time theyre needed.
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Source: http://wtnh.com/2015/01/28/national-guard-helps-stonington-dig-out-after-blizzard-2015/
