Hull Impressed With Town Response to Sandy

Town Manager Jeff Hull said he will likely come to a decision on Tuesday afternoon after speaking with Police Chief Michael Begonis.

Updated at 4:25 p.m.: The town has confirmed that a decision has been bade about Trick or Treating. The Halloween tradition will go on as planned on Wednesday evening. Original Story: Town Manager Jeff Hull said no decision has been made about Wednesday’s scheduled Trick or Treating in Wilmington as crews continue to work on Tuesday to clean up damage from Hurricane Sandy. “At this point, I don’t have a definite answer,” said Hull, who added that he will likely make the decision later today after speaking with Police Chief Michael Begonis. Reading Municipal Light Department, meanwhile, provided customers with an afternoon update as they continue to work on downed trees and wires. According to the RMLD update, in some cases power may be out…

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Life in the Mom Lane

Emergency Preparedness Critical For Families

Hurricane Sandy served as a reminder of the importance of having your family prepared for incoming storms.

From most of us moms, the first moment that we discovered we were expecting a baby was also the first moment that our number one priority in life changed. Suddenly, as if on cue, life becomes all about protecting our child. We are no longer our own number one priority and probably never will be again. Life becomes an effort to keep our children safe from harm under any circumstances. As Sandy barreled up the east coast this week and people all over New England prepared for the worst it got me thinking about how much information is too much for children to process. Yes, we want our kids to be prepared with a plan in case of disaster but, at what point, does preparing lead to scaring them half to death? Frankly, watching news coverage this …

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Streets Remain Closed, Power Out in Wilmington

Crews are working to on Tuesday morning to fix the damage left behind by Hurricane Sandy.

Clean up from Monday’s damaging hurricane continues into Tuesday as many residents remain without power and several roads are still closed. According to the Wilmington Police Department, Shawsheen Ave. at the Billerica line will remain closed through early evening Tuesday, possibly remaining shut down into Wednesday due to Hurricane Sandy. That area remains closed after a massive pine tree was brought down by high winds, bringing down six utility poles with it before landing on a passing truck. But Route 129 isn’t the only closure. Salem Street is also closed at Ring Ave. and Butters Row was closed as of 9:15 a.m. Reading Municipal Light Department still has plenty of work to ahead, with a long list of streets still in the dark. According …

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Sandy Thumps Wilmington, Property Damage Widespread

About eight residents had trees fall through their homes during Monday's hurricane.

Hurricane Sandy left visible damage throughout Wilmington, and Deputy Fire Chief Rick McClellan saw almost all of it first hand during a busy Monday. McClellan said about eight trees fell through houses around town, though just one person was transported to an area hospital with injuries because of the storm. That person was the driver of a truck on Shawsheen Ave. who had a large pine tree land on his vehicle. The man suffered injuries to his legs, but his condition was not life threatening when he was transported. As of about 11 p.m. on Monday, McCellan said Route 129 remained closed from Grace Drive to Reed Street. Hathaway Road and Park Ave. were also closed late Monday with trees across live wires. There was some puddling in streets …

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RMLD Unable to Restore Power By Monday's End

In its latest update, Reading Municipal Light Department said customers left in the dark by midnight will not have electricity until daylight at the earliest.

Updated Tuesday at 12:35 a.m.: According to an update on the RMLD website at 11:30 p.m. on Monday, outages are still an issue throughout Wilmington. "At this time we are still experiencing additional outages being reported throughout the service territory," the update said. Original Story: Reading Municipal Light Department employees prepared for the possibility of widespread power outages, and that's exactly what they got during Hurricane Sandy. And as of late Monday night, crews were still hard at work with no immediate end in sight. According to a 9 p.m. update on the RMLD website, customers who do not have power back by midnight will not be restored before morning. "RMLD crews will be making areas safe throughout the night," said the …

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Winds From Hurricane Sandy to Ramp Down Monday Night, Tuesday Morning

Strong gusts continue as wind speeds gradually diminish Monday night.

Although the Boston region will continue to experience strong gusts of wind from Hurricane Sandy Monday night, in general winds will be dying down, according to WHDH. Pete Bouchard, chief meteorologist at the TV station, in a broadcast that aired shortly before 7 p.m. Monday, said that Boston was experiencing wind gusts of up to 60 miles per hour. However, he said those wind speeds would be slowly diminishing Monday night and into Tuesday morning. By 10 p.m. Boston would experience winds of around 29 miles per hour. By 1 a.m. those winds would be down to about 18 miles per hour, Bouchard reported. The National Weather Service was forecasting that in the Boston region, "strongest winds will occur through 7 p.m. … then a gradual decrease in …

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Sandy Closes Wilmington Town Offices Monday Afternoon

Though employees went to work on Monday morning, they were dismissed at 2 p.m.

Wilmington town offices opened as scheduled on Monday morning, but by mid-afternoon Hurricane Sandy forced the closure and dismissal of all non-essential staff. According to a press realease from the town, employees from Town Hall, Wilmington Memorial Libary and the Wilmington Senior Center were dismissed at 2 p.m. due to the storm. "Residents are encouraged to remain off the roads during the storm as to minimize safety risks and ensure clear passage for emergency vehicles," the press release said. Town officials encourage residents to only call 911 in case of an emergency. Non-emergency issues can be relayed to the Wilmington Police Department at (978) 658-5071. Any outages can be reported to Reading Municipal Light Department at (781) …

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Hurricane Sandy Massachusetts Live Blog

Our live stream will keep you informed on the latest as it happens. We're following Patches, public officials and trusted public safety accounts to keep you up to date.

Looking for solid information about Sandy's impact? Our live stream will follow Patches across the state, public officials and agencies, trusted public safety Twitter users and others. Cut through the noise and get the best information available in real time.

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