Schools

Town Supervisor Lifts Snow Emergency

Supervisor Petrone issued the original order effective 1 p.m. yesterday.

Huntington supervisor Frank P. Petrone today lifted the order declaring a snow emergency in the Town.

 Petrone's directive lifting the order was effective at noon. 

"While we ask motorists to continue to use caution, the restrictions imposed by a state of emergency are no longer necessary," Petrone said.

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Petrone issued the original order effective 1 p.m. yesterday. Under a snow emergency, the Supervisor has the power to close roads, appropriate necessary equipment from all sources and make necessary purchases without following the usual procedures. The declaration also makes available to the highway department Town equipment and personnel to assist highway department crews.

Because the snowfall had stopped, the town was at last able to catch up and get most of the roads cleared by Thursday, Feb. 11, at 9 a.m. Town Hall was open for business, as was the Huntington Public Library. Most village businesses were open or preparing to.

Find out what's happening in Huntingtonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Lloyd Harbor  roads were entirely clear by 9:30 a.m. and Village Hall was open for business.

Noone needed to those over at a Suffolk County park in Lloyd Harbor, that the snow emergency was lifted. More than a dozen people were there by 10 a.m. letting their dogs run, sledding and, yes, even skiing and snowboarding on the steep decline near the estate's boathouse near the water.

Earlier reports:
After the snow continued to fall throughout the day yesterday, Huntington's Superintendent of Schools John Finello announced Wednesday evening that all schools will be closed for a second day in a row Thursday. After-school events will also be suspended.

Earlier, Huntington Supervisor Frank P. Petrone declared an official snow emergency that became effective at 1 p.m., "allowing the Town to take whatever action is necessary to protect the safety of Town residents during and after the current storm," according to a press release.

Declaring a snow emergency allows town department heads to "put all town employees on notice that they might be needed at any time to assist in this effort, which should help in the scheduling of crews to ensure that all workers have adequate rest."

 Under a snow emergency, the supervisor has the power to close roads, appropriate necessary equipment from all sources and make necessary purchases without following the usual procedures. The declaration also makes available to the highway department Town equipment and personnel to assist highway department crews.

"Residents should feel confident that the Town will do whatever it takes to ensure, as best as possible, that roads are passable and necessary services are being provided. At the same time, we ask the public's help by staying off the roads unless absolutely necessary and by parking cars off public streets," Supervisor Petrone said.

Town Public Information Officer AJ Carter said at 4 p.m.  that the supervisor had been at Town Hall for much of the day and was heading to the Town's Emergency Operations Center at the Town's general services maintenance building on Pulaski Road.

Anyone needing to contact the Town should call 351-3234 for emergencies.

Huntington Highway Department continued to dispatch sand to all points of the town as it had  over night and all morning, clearing and sanding main roads such as New York Avenue and Main Street, while secondary roads such as Creek Road remained snowy and very icy.

In mid-morning the  National Weather Service removed its winter storm warning for this area, instead issuing a blizzard warning as of 3:40 a.m. until 6 a.m. Thursday. Snow totals are expected to reach 11 to 15 inches.

The Long Island Rail Road rescheduled several trains from Penn Station to Long Island Wednesday afternoon so that commuters could get home before the snow accumulated significantly.   Riders can find out the latest by calling 631-231-LIRR. Wednesday evening, the MTA said trains should be operating normally Thursday morning. LIRR workers were clearing tracks Wednesday afternoon and standing by at the Huntington station to assist passengers on the platforms and steps.

Workers were busy redistributing supplies of salt, sand and equipment at town and Suffolk County sites on Oakwood Road early Wednesday morning, their vehicle motors roaring and backup alerts sounding.  Roads were wet though not icy as light snow fell. Later in the day, few vehicles other than snow equipment could be found on Oakwood Road as slush, snow and ice accumulated on the pavement.

The Long Island Power Authority said customers could report an outage by calling 1-800-490-0075. As of Wednesday evening, LIPA was reporting that just one Huntington customer was without service.

Among school districts closed today are Half Hollow Hills, Northport and South Huntington, while several others are opening on tw0-hour delays.


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