Putnam Officials: Sandy Will Impact Area, One Way or Another

The following was circulated via the email group Brewster10509 around 8 p.m. Friday night. The sender identified it as a message sent to Putnam County employees from an official at the Bureau of Emergency Services:

We are sending this update to keep you informed as Hurricane Sandy progresses towards our region. Today Putnam County Executive MaryEllen Odell along with County Emergency Response Officials participated in a National Weather Service briefing.  Following is an overview of the current and predicted conditions. The storm is still quite a distance away and while it is impossible to accurately predict where the storm will make landfall, it has become clear that we will be impacted in one way or another.

The storm convergence models are showing that the storm could make landfall anywhere from Virginia to Cape Cod. The most likely landing appears to be Southern New Jersey. That is actually not the best scenario for us. The damaging side of the storm is the Northeast edge which would then be over us. The best scenario is for the storm to move north of us. That would not leave us clear, but simply produce a 'less' intensive and shorter duration storm.

The storm is clearly losing its organization and beginning to fall apart. While that sounds like a good scenario it is actually not.  While the storm is not as organized, it is mixing with other weather systems and spreading out over a very large footprint. This will leave us with a classic coastal storm which in many ways is as damaging as a hurricane. In addition, due to its size, it will be a long-lasting storm, most likely being with us for up to 3 days.

Another concern remains with our Hudson River communities.  The tide will be higher than normal due to atmospheric conditions and that combined with an increasing East Fetch (sustaining winds and atmospheric pressure that do not allow normal drainage of previous high tides) will result in the possibility of a storm surge that equals Hurricane Irene in 2011. In addition consider the storm duration.  This means up to 3 higher than normal tidal cycles.

While the center (what’s left of it) is predicted to make landfall on Tuesday there is now concern regarding the Hurricane’s instability and migration to a coastal storm. This means that as the storm falls apart it gets larger and the impact of the storm will begin earlier than thought. We are looking at winds and rain beginning Sunday night (October 28, 2012) with increasing intensity throughout Monday & Tuesday.  The full storm may not be out of our area until Thursday.

Temperatures will remain slightly above seasonal at the onset, but as the storm mixes with a cold front temperatures will begin to descend into slightly lower than seasonal. By Wednesday we will see temperatures of 50 F during the day and 40 F overnight. There are no below freezing temperatures predicted.

We should be prepared for flooding conditions as the remaining leaf cover is removed from trees. This can create blockage for normal drainage paths such as small streams. 

In preparation for this event, take time now to review your Personal Storm Emergency Plan and

• Have an Emergency GO Kit (everything you need if you have to leave your house)
• Establish a Family Communication Plan (how will you communicate with your family during and after the event?)
• Know your surroundings; is your property flood prone?  Take protective action now!
• If you have a generator, be sure it has been installed by a qualified electrician.  You MUST have a transfer switch installed to prevent dangerous electricity from injuring utility crews as they repair damaged lines
• For more information on storm preparation go to www.ready.gov