Seymour First Selectman Kurt Miller delcared a state of emergency Monday at 1 p.m. in advance of a major winter storm heading into the region.
The declaration means no vehicles should be on the roads starting at 8 p.m.
Miller said he’ll be using the town’s “Code Red” system and social media to keep the public in the loop. Seymour government leads local government in the Valley in terms of useful Facebook posts. Click here to visit the page.
The town is activating its emergency operations center at the Seymour Police Department. In addition to regular staffing, Miller said the town will have three to four people charged with answers phone calls, texts and emails that come in from the public.
The town plows are ready with a full supply of sand and salt, Miller said.
Snow started falling about 10:30 a.m. in the lower Valley.
The town’s plow drivers will be in radio communication with fire, police and EMS.
In the event of an emergency, plow trucks will be able to immediately break away from a normal route in order to clear the roads for emergency vehicles.
Garbage pickup by Winter Bros. was proceeding normally Monday — but Miller warned the company may not be able to complete all scheduled Monday pickups because of the storm.
“If your garbage has not been picked up by 5 p.m., bring your cans in,” Miller said Monday.
There will be no garbage pickup Tuesday or Wednesday in Seymour.
“Everybody will be delayed two days. Garbage that was to be picked up Tuesday will be picked up on Thursday, and so on,” Miller said.
Text from Monday afternoon’s Code Red
“This is Seymour First Selectman Kurt Miller with a Community Service announcement utilizing the Code Red System.
The town of Seymour has completed preparation for the impending storm. As of 1:00 pm today, I am declaring a state of emergency in the town.
We will be closing all municipal buildings as of 3:00 pm and they will remain closed until situations improve enough to bring employees back to work safely.
I will be instituting a travel ban for Seymour roads beginning this evening at 8:00 pm. I ask that all residents please stay off the road for not only your own safety, but for the safety of our Emergency Personal.
We will be opening the Emergency Command Center and our emergency services and public works department will be ready to respond as needed. Our plows are ready and will have a full supply of salt for the storm. I ask for your patients as we operate through the storm.
We will be working to open roads as quickly as we can, but please understand that we need to do so in a specific order. Curbside pick-up for both garbage and recycling will be delayed two days.
In case of a loss of power, those who need electricity for medical purposes should contact our Dispatch Center at 203 – 881-5152.
As a reminder, if there is a need to run a generator, please make sure that you keep it at least 10 feet from the house and you clear all exhaust pipes for any propane or natural gas appliances.
Should you have questions or need assistance during the storm that is a non-emergency, please call 203 – 888-2511.
We will provide more information as the storm progresses.
Please be safe.”
