Tag Archives: snowstorm

Worcester news you can use!

March 13, 2017 admin

WORCESTER STORM INFO:

Parking ban in effect early Tuesday, City offices closed, trash collection delayed

Worcester prepares for 18+inch storm!

In anticipation of Tuesday’s snow storm, predicted to drop 18-plus inches on Worcester, City Manager Edward M. Augustus, Jr. on Monday made the following announcements:

CITY STORM RESPONSE

· Public works crews began pretreating the city’s streets at noon Monday and will continue through the evening. Morning crews will be ready to go starting at 4 a.m. Tuesday, with more than 350 pieces of equipment ready to plow, salt and sand.

· The city’s Customer Service line, 508-929-1300, will be staffed starting at 6:30 a.m. through the end of the storm.

· The City’s Emergency Operations Center at the new Regional Emergency Communications Center will open Tuesday morning and stay open throughout the storm, to allow representatives from various City departments, public utilities and the Worcester Public Schools to coordinate their response.

PARKING BAN

· A declared winter parking ban will go into effect at 2 a.m. Tuesday. Residents can check the city’s website to find out where to park on their street. The parking ban is an essential part of keeping the city’s streets clear in a snow emergency, and the Worcester Police Department teams will be enforcing the ban as soon as it begins, with tickets and tows where necessary.

· All municipal garages will be open and free to the public starting at 6:30 p.m. Monday, through the duration of the storm, until 8 a.m. Wednesday.

TRASH/RECYCLING COLLECTION

· Trash and recycling collection will be postponed for Tuesday. Collection across the City will be delayed by one day. Tuesday’s collection areas will be picked up on Wednesday; Wednesday areas will be collected on Thursday, and so on. This will allow for all available resources to be put towards plowing and clearing the roads.

SCHOOLS

· The Worcester Public Schools have canceled classes for Tuesday.

CITY OFFICES CLOSED

· City Manager Augustus has ordered all municipal offices closed on Tuesday, in keeping with Gov. Charlie Baker’s call to keep as many people as possible off the roads. City Hall, the Worcester Public Library, the Worcester Senior Center will all be closed to the public, and to all non-essential city employees.

· All City Hall meetings, including City Council, will be postponed.

· City Manager Augustus also urged all Worcester businesses to consider closing if possible on Tuesday, or to encourage employees whose jobs allow to work from home.

SHELTERS

St. John’s [Church on Temple Street] will again open its emergency overflow homeless shelter Monday evening.

The St. John’s food pantry will remain open throughout the day Tuesday.

The city’s emergency shelter at Worcester Technical High School will be ready if needed for large-scale power outages or other emergencies requiring the sheltering of a large number of people.

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Fred Astaire called her “beautiful dynamite” …

Green Island Grrrl, Rosalie's Blog

Go, Gordon Davis, go!

December 31, 2015 admin

CM Ed Augustus and DPW head Paul Moosey fucked up when it came to deploying snowplows this past snowstorm. Some say Moosey’s got the personality of a wet dish rag. Or slushy street.

Snow’s Limited Judgment

By Gordon Davis

Snow, rain, freezing rain, and a flash freeze came to Worcester on December 29, 2015. As of late afternoon of December 30, 2015 many of the streets in Worcester are still ice packed and unplowed.

Worcester City Manager Edward Augustus Jr., has stated in his December 30, 2015 public letter, “Many of our streets are not in the condition our taxpayers have the right to expect.”

Augustus has admitted in his letter that the wrong decision “was made.” The use of the passive voice in the assignment of blame leaves open and unclear who is to blame for this mess. Most politicians are skilled at the use of the passive voice to shift blame.

The city manager in his letter also said the Worcester Department of Public Works (DPW) deployed salters and sanders well before the precipitation arrived. However, it did not call in the plows because the forecast was for “slush.” I suppose this makes some sense.

When it became clear to the DPW, the weather and street conditions would be more than just slush, the DPW called in the plows in the late afternoon of December 29, 2015. This does not seem to have been entirely accurate, as many of the main streets are still ice covered inn the late afternoon of December 30, 2015, especially the break down lanes.

I had not seen one plow truck on my street or anywhere in Worcester on December 30, 2015. Perhaps the city manager can say what streets were plowed.

DPW Commissioner Paul Moosey said there was a limited response to the flash freezing of snow and rain. Unfortunately, his response not only did not excuse the error in judgment, but failed to address another important issue.

The issue of pedestrians was not addressed. Because of the ice and snow, the sidewalks have to be shoveled and treated.

We pedestrians have gotten used to the failure of some property owners to shovel and treat their sidewalks.

Even the City of Worcester fails to do so on some of their properties. When a sidewalk is unshoveled or untreated pedestrians usually can walk in the break down lanes in the streets.

But this storm we could not.

The breakdown lanes were not plowed and were as bad as the unshoveled sidewalks. Plowed streets being important for pedestrians did not seem to be a concern for Augustus or Moosey of the DPW. Neither of whom mentioned us in their public communiqués.

This lack of concern seems to fit the pattern of Worcester ignoring or marginalizing pedestrians.

There seems to be about one pedestrian death per week in Worcester.

There is a perception that the police looks first to see if the pedestrian was at fault and then looks for the fault of the driver in a pedestrian motorist accident.

It is time to have a default law assuming that the motorist who hits a pedestrian is always at fault for not yielding to a pedestrian.

Getting back to the snow and ice issues, the City Manager Augustus should review how decisions are made in terms of when to do more than a “limited” response to road conditions. Augustus should take full responsibility for any and all errors of judgment and stop using the passive voice in assigning blame.

It was shameful how Governor Charlie Baker shifted blame for last season’s MBTA failures. This season’s failures clearly are the responsibility of Governor Baker.

I hope Worcester City Manager Ed Augustus does not trap himself into this shameful practice of shifting blames. He should own up to this and other errors in judgments he has made.

Green Island Grrrl, Rosalie's Blog

Snow day

January 31, 2015 admin

Jett! – January 2015

InCity Voices

The blizzard got you going brrrrr? Why not cook and go ahhhh?

January 27, 2015 admin

By Chef Joey

Having fun things to eat is always fun! Especially after a snowstorm, when we’re all out shoveling or sledding or just hanging out enjoying each other’s company. Remember! The best recipes are the simple ones!

Flatbreads are easy and tasty. Spread with jelly, sprinkle goat cheese, and top with caramelized onion. Beautiful and tasty.

I recently had a nice surprise with a buffalo chicken dip.

1 pound of boneless skinless chicken breast

1 Bottle of Franks Red Hot sauce (12 oz. or 1.5 cups)

8 oz container of cream cheese

1 cup Mexican cheese blend (or your favorite blue cheese or
gorgonzola)

1 cup Ranch dressing

1 bag tortilla chips and/or veggies for dipping

Instructions

Poach about 1 pound of boneless skinless chicken breast in chicken stock and water.

Using 2 forks, gently thread chicken into small chunks. You can also shred your chicken in your stand mixer using the fat, paddle beater.

In a bowl, combine shredded chicken with Franks Red Hot sauce, to taste. My family likes it spicy, so I use lots! Let the chicken soak in the hot sauce until ready to use.

Spread one 8 oz container of cream cheese into the bottom of an un-greased baking pan or casserole dish.

Top with buffalo chicken. Sprinkle on some cheese. Use a Mexican cheese blend, but you can also use blue cheese or gorgonzola. Finish it of by drizzling on some Ranch dressing.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, until dip is melted and bub- bling.

Serve with chips and veggies for dipping!

1 package Club Crackers
Ingredients

1 pound Tin Sliced Bacon (or more, depending on number of
crackers)

Grated Parmesan Cheese

Optional Alternative: Brown Sugar Instead Of Parmesan Cheese

Preparation Instructions

Lay crackers (as many as you want) face up on a cookie sheet.

Scoop about 1 teaspoon of grated Parmesan cheese onto each cracker.

Cut your package of bacon in half (or cut pieces individually) and carefully, so the cheese doesn’t fall off, wrap each cheese covered cracker in one half piece of bacon, completely covering the cracker. It should ft snugly around the cracker.

Place the bacon-wrapped crackers onto a baking sheet that has a rack on it.

Place in a 250-degree oven for about 2 hours.

Everyone enjoys a good snack! Stay toasty!

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Your vehicle and extreme winter weather

January 27, 2015 admin

Some tips from Firestone:

Test your battery – Have it checked out, as your battery can lose power due to the drop in temperature. The last thing you want is to be stuck in freezing weather with a car that won’t start!

Check your tire pressure monthly – For every 10 degrees the temperature drops, your tires can lose about 1 pound per square inch (PSI) of pressure. Monitor your tire pressure more closely during the winter time.

Replace all-season tires with winter tires – Temperatures lower than 45 degrees cause your all-season tires to stiffen and lose traction, but the latest generations of winter tires remain flexible in freezing temperatures, improving traction and available grip.

Check your tire depth with the penny test to make sure you have enough tread to grip the road in ice and precipitation.

Keep your car washed – Keep the exterior washed and waxed to protect your vehicle from the elements as the seasons change.

InCity Voices

Storm safety tips

January 26, 2015 admin

With snow, strong winds and potential blizzard conditions in the forecast, the nonprofit Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH) offers the following eight (8) last minute tips to help protect your family and home.

Keep Safe & Warm

1. Gather together an emergency kit and include flashlights, batteries, blankets, a battery-powered or hand-crank radio, non-perishable food, a can opener, cash, and an external battery pack for mobile devices.

2. Organize layers of loose fitting, lightweight; warm clothing rather than one layer of heavy clothing. The outer garments should be tightly woven and water repellent.

3. Use all heaters, fireplaces, generators and other appliances safely by remembering ventilation and avoiding use in wet areas. Never burn charcoal indoors.

4. Fill up your car fuel tank at least half full in case of a prolonged power outage as gas stations rely on electricity to operate pumps and may not have a generator.

5. Text SHELTER + your ZIP code to 43362 (4FEMA) to find the nearest shelter in your area (example: shelter 12345) if you cannot safely shelter at home.

Protect Your Home

6. Insulate pipes exposed to the elements or cold drafts with insulating foam. For as little as $1 per 6’ of insulation, you can stop pipes from freezing and save energy. If you cannot purchase insulating foam in time, consider wrapping towels around pipes and fastening them with duct tape.

7. Place an insulating dome or other covering on outdoor faucets and spigots to help prevent inside the pipes from freezing, expanding and causing costly leaks.

8. Drip faucets to reduce the build-up of pressure in the pipes. Even if the pipes freeze, you have released the pressure from the water system reducing the likelihood of a rupture. If you are going out of town, and suspect that temperatures will drop or a power outage will occur, turn off the water to your home and open all of the taps to drain the water system to avoid returning to wet and damaged flooring, walls and electrical.

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IF YOU HEAT WITH PROPANE

Be Prepared:

Mark location of your tank with a flag, pole, or stake – and keep path to tank clear. The marker should be higher than the expected snow cover depth for your location. It will help to avoid plowing or shoveling snow on top of your tank. Should your tank become covered with snow, use a broom to clear it. And ensure that there is a clear path to your tank for deliveries.

Check your chimneys, flue pipes, vent connectors, and propane tank for damage, blockage, or debris caused by snow and ice. Use a broom rather than a shovel, and clear these areas frequently. This will help reduce the possibility of carbon monoxide poisoning due to blocked or damaged chimneys, flues, and vents.

Use extreme caution when operating portable generators. Never use a portable generator (gasoline, diesel, or propane) indoors or in enclosed areas. This can result in carbon monoxide poisoning or death. Keep portable generators outside and ten feet from the house.

Never use a stove for space heating and never use outdoor propane appliances indoors or in enclosed areas. Proper ventilation is necessary for their safe operation; and carbon monoxide fumes emitted can be lethal. Only use appliances indoors that are designed and approved for indoor use.

Stay Safe:

Take immediate action if you smell gas inside or outside of your home or business. Follow these simple instructions:

No flames or sparks! Immediately put out all smoking materials and other open flames. Do not operate or turn on or off lights, appliances, telephones or cell phones.

Leave the area immediately! Get everyone out of the building or area where you suspect gas is leaking.

Shut off the gas. Turn off the main gas supply valve on your propane tank, if it is safe to do so. To close the valve, turn it to the right (clockwise).

Report the leak. From a neighbor’s home or other building away from the gas leak, call your propane retailer right away. If you can’t reach your propane retailer, call 911 or your local fire department.

Do not return to the building or area until your propane retailer, emergency responder, or qualified service technician determines that it is safe to do so.

Get your system checked. Before you attempt to use any of your propane appliances, your propane retailer or a qualified service technician must check your entire system to ensure that it is leak-free.