Groton Homeowners Rush to Buy Generators

New England Cycle Works in Groton fielded hundreds of calls Thursday and Friday from people wanting a generator ahead of Hurricane Sandy.

“We had people coming in yesterday morning. We were already busy,” sales manager Chris Orlinsky said Friday. The store had a line Friday until about 2 p.m., sold out of generators, then started taking orders for more.

By late afternoon, employees were unloading more generators. The business expects deliveries today and Sunday.

At Johnson’s Hardware, the store also expected an emergency shipment of generators Saturday afternoon. The generators can be reserved over the phone by calling 860-448-176 or by sending an e-mail to johnsonshardware@aol.com; include your name and phone number and the store will call you back.

On Friday, forecasters were predicting a 90 percent chance Hurricane Sandy would hit the east coast and stay for awhile.

"It's almost a weeklong, five-day, six-day event," said Jim Cisco, a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecaster who coined the term "Frankenstorm." "It's going to be a widespread, serious storm."

CL&P has sent a request to utility companies and contractors in the Midwest for help and is seeking 2,000 workers to come to Connecticut by Sunday night, said Mitch Gross, the utility's spokesman.

Cycle Works Service Manager Michael Church said many customers looking for generators in Groton Friday were local homeowners who remembered Tropical Storm Irene last year and didn’t want a repeat.

“Some people were without power for ten days or two weeks," he said. "That’s quite a long time."