Merci, Henri! Storm Spares New Haven

After causing New Haveners to prepare for a hurricane, Tropical Storm Henri shifted course and wrought its havoc elsewhere.

Henri — originally predicted to be a hurricane that would hit New Haven directly Sunday — instead weakened and shifted east, knocking out power to 100,000 households in Rhode Island and eastern Connecticut, but sparing New Haven.

As of 2:30 p.m., the city had received under an inch of rain, Mayor Justin Elicker reported at a storm briefing update at the Emergency Operations Center at 200 Orange St, two hours after the storm swept past southern Connecticut and made landfall in Rhode Island. (Update: Concerns continue about some possible flooding as rains continue through Monday.)

New Haven had reported ​“no injuries. No loss of life. No property damage.

“That’s a win for the city,” stated city emergency management chief Rick Fontana.

“We were very lucky,” said Elicker.

As a result, Elicker recommended that it is safe to return home for anyone in Morris Cove, Fair Haven, or City Point who followed his voluntary evacuation order. The city planned at 7 p.m. to close three of four emergency shelters it set up for the storm; the fourth, at Career, will remain open until Monday morning.

Scheduled trash pick-up will take place as usual Monday morning. Scheduled Monday street-sweeping will take place, too, but the city will not ticket illegally parked cars.

“Just tomorrow,” Elicker added about the latter break.

The city still anticipates that rain through Monday could create flooding. Officials recommended caution on the roads.

At the briefing, officials were asked whether they overprepared and unnecessarily worried people about a disaster that didn’t materialize (here).

Fontana responded by noting that original forecasts showed Henri potentially devastating the city. It’s always important to prepare in such cases, he said ​“It’s easier to upscale before the storm. It’s never easy to scale up during a storm.”

“My biggest concern is that people … get the message that the city of New Haven overprepares. so you shouldn’t take it seriously,” Elicker said. If Henri had followed its originally forecast path, the city needed to be ready.

Click here to watch the full press briefing.

Earlier versions of this story follow:

Henri Update: Storm Makes Landfall In Rhode Island; City So Far Spared Brunt

The tropical storm formerly known as Hurricane Henri pounded eastern Connecticut and Rhode Island Sunday, while at least so far sparing New Haven the brunt of its fury. But the city continued preparing for flooding, toppled trees and outages in the hours ahead.

The storm made landfall in Westerly, R.I., around 12:15 p.m. At that point it had already knocked out power for 75,000 households in that state, and another 24,000 in Connecticut, Gov. Ned Lamont reported at a 1 p.m. briefing.

Most of the outages were concentrated in southeastern Connecticut communities like Canterbury and Stonington.

Two days ago, Henri was expected to be a hurricane, rather than a tropical storm. And it appeared headed to land smack in New Haven, leading the community to scramble to make emergency preparations.

In moving more eastward than expected, Henri didn’t end up entering Long Island Sound, producing less storm surge as a result.

But, as Lamont pointed out, Henri’s still here. The main trajectory of the storm in the state is from northeast to northwest Connecticut. But flooding is still possible in New Haven, along with downed trees and wires, as heavy storms hit the area.

“We’re still just getting started,” Lamont cautioned. ​“Don’t get complacent. Isaias, Sandy — those were not hurricanes either.” Tropical Storm Isaias left 800,000 people in Connecticut without power, he noted.

“We have twice as many crews on the ground as we’ve ever had before” to get power back on this time, Lamont added. The state has also closed several nursing homes and moved approximately 280 residents to other locations.

Laura Glesby contributed reporting.

Following is an earlier version of this story.

10:30 a.m.: Henri Watch: Storm Downgraded, Shifts; Coastal Neighbors Urged To Evacuate; Shelters Opened

Henri will hit New Haven sooner than expected — with less force than feared. But is still plenty dangerous.

That’s the latest word from the city’s Emergency Operations Center Sunday as of 10:15 a.m.

The original forecast Friday suggested Henri could qualify as a hurricane and hit New Haven directly Sunday around 6 p.m. with winds as high as 70 miles per hour.

Henri has since shifted east along its path up the coast. It is expected to strike directly at the Connecticut-Rhode Island border, not here. And it has been downgraded to a tropical storm.

Which can still wreak lots of damage. Officials said the best guess now is that the storm will peak around 1 – 2 p.m. in New Haven. Winds could reach 40 to 50 miles per hour. And three inches of rain could fall, causing flooding.

That forecast, too, could change.

So emergency crews remain at full strength and hard at work, and officials are still urging New Haveners to stay home and be prepared to lose power. The city is urging people living low-lying sections of the East Shore, Fair Haven, and City Point neighborhoods to evacuate their homes.

Mayor Justin Elicker went door to door with other officials in Morris Cove Saturday urging neighbors to leave their homes in advance of the storm. The city has opened evacuation shelters at Career High School at 140 Legion Ave., Nathan Hale School at 480 Townsend Ave., Jepson School at 15 Lexington Ave., and King-Robinson School at 150 Fournier St.

The governor declared a state of emergency. CtTransit Buses will not run on Sunday. Metro-North Railroad announced that it will be suspending service on the New Haven Line starting at 4 a.m. Sunday.

The city’s evacuation recommendation applies to:

• East Shore residents south of Myron Street.
• Fair Haven Residents on Haven Street and John Murphy Drive.
• City Point Residents on South Water Street.

“The driving force behind the city’s choice to recommend evacuation is flooding in the roads can limit first responders’ ability to respond,” said mayoral spokesperson Kyle Buda.

Lisa Milone, who lives on Anthony Drive, bumped into Elicker after checking in on her elderly uncle and aunt Tony and Lucille Sacco.

The Saccos live right on the water. But Milone and her cousins couldn’t convince the Saccos (who owned the famous Tony & Lucille’s Restaurant on Wooster Square before retiring) to clear out.

“This fucking house has been here 120 years. I’m not going anywhere,” Tony told Milone.

Milone wasn’t planning on evacuating, either; she lives on Anthony Drive, which isn’t right on the water. She said she’s now doubly sure she’ll stay put during the storm because she plans to check in on her aunt and uncle and help them if needed. She said she doesn’t know of any neighbors who at this point plan to evacuate, either.

Government, Utilities Prepare

“I don’t think Connecticut has ever been as well prepared for a storm as we are for Henri,” Gov. Ned Lamont said at a Saturday storm briefing.

As part of that preparation, the governor touched base by phone with President Joe Biden and submitted a request to him for a pre-landfall emergency declaration for the state, to enable Connecticut to get federal money to deal with the effects of the storm. On Sunday, Lamont announced that Biden has approved the request, meaning the flow of federal aid can begin before the storm hits.

United Illuminating put out an email alert with safety tips for before and during the storm. Click here for that message. To report a power outage, go to uinet.com or call 800.722.5584 (800.7.CALL.UI)

City officials urged New Haveners to stock up on supplies, including food, water, and batteries, and to fully charge devices in case the power goes out. They asked people to check on neighbors as well.

And, based on how many people who lost their cars in recent storms, City Engineer Giovanni Zinn offered this plea: ​“Do not drive on any flooded roads.”

“If there is water on the road,” he repeated, ​“do not drive on the road.”

Officials are keeping close track of the forecast as it evolves, since small changes in the storm’s path can make a big difference in where it hits hardest. ​“We’re hitting refresh on the national weather center,” Zinn said, ​“like we’re buying concert tickets.”

More Preparation Tips

Following are additional suggestions for how to prepare for Tropical Storm/Hurricane Henri, courtesy of the state Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection and the Commission on Fire Prevention and Control:

• Use portable generators outside and away from the home to prevent exhaust gasses and Carbon Monoxide from entering the house.

• If your CO Detector sounds, evacuate the home and call the fire department. They can come to check for the presence of CO and also check your fuel burning appliances for problems.

• During power outages many people choose to use candles to provide light in their home. Candles are open flames and can ignite any nearby combustibles. Blow out candle when you leave a room or use flashlights as a safer alternative.

• If outside or while driving, be especially aware of the potential for downed power lines. They are often tangled in trees and might not be easily visible. Any downed wire must be considered live so keep at least 10 – 15 feet away from any downed wires.

• Downed wires can also come in contact with other items; fences, guardrails and or roadside signs and can potentially energize them as well, which can cause an electrocution hazard.

• Street flooding is also a common outcome from storms. If you see water covering the roadway, you cannot easily determine the depth of the water so do not drive through standing water, it is always safer to go around. Remember, Don’t drown, go around.

• Check your sump pump before the storm to ensure it is working properly. If your basement does flood, avoid entering the standing water to prevent contamination from possible sewage. Also stay away from any electrical fixtures in the basement and have the water removed as soon as you can.