Hurricane Preparedness Forum – August 17, 2017 7:30 PM at the Rainbow Senior Center

Pictured (L to R): Deputy Administrator Joe Barone, Village Administrator Doug Madlon, Emergency Manager Ray Fais and Deputy Mayor Maryann Weckerle preparing for the upcoming Hurricane Preparedness Forum.

The Village of Lindenhurst is making concerted efforts to ensure the safety and well-being of our residents. As part of this effort, Mayor Mike Lavorata and the Board of Trustees will be hosting a Hurricane Awareness Forum for our residents. The forum will be held at the Rainbow Senior Center on August 17, 2017 starting at 7:30 PM. All residents, and especially those living south of Montauk Highway who were so severely impacted and still recovering almost five years later, are invited to attend.

Although Superstorm Sandy was almost five years ago, some of our residents may not feel threatened by hurricanes after escaping almost completely unscathed by Sandy. However, for those residents south of Montauk Highway whose lives were turned upside down and inside out, they will never forget.

Even though Sandy wasn’t an actual hurricane, it was still an overwhelming storm that devastated the Village of Lindenhurst as it made its way through the New York Metropolitan area on that Monday evening of October 29th, 2012. The storm made landfall along the New Jersey coastline near Atlantic City bringing with it winds in excess of 85 mph and an unprecedented storm surge of 7.9 feet at the Village Marina tide gauge. Although Sandy was downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone before it made landfall, it was still packing hurricane strength winds as it tore into Lindenhurst.

As many of our village residents found out, it only takes one storm to change their lives forever. Tropical cyclones are among nature’s most powerful and destructive phenomenon, and our residents need to be prepared. Even those residents not living along the coast can be impacted by flooding, high winds and even tornadoes spawned by the hurricane.

The Village of Lindenhurst Emergency Manager, Ray Fais, has arranged to have the Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Public Safety for the Town of Oyster Bay, Leonard Symons, who was recently honored by the national Hurricane Center and the New York Weather Forecast Office with the distinguished Service Award, along with other members of the Department of Public Safety to discuss community hurricane preparedness. They will emphasize practical tips for preparation and preparedness.

The presentation will be followed by a Question and Answer period at which time our residents can discuss their concerns.