Resilient Residents Cope with Fall Snowstorm

You don’t realize how much you rely on electricity until you don’t have it. That was the lesson many learned from this past weekend’s fall snowstorm.

While many sought refuge with relatives or friends in towns that did have power, others booked hotel rooms and still others decided to stick it out. The Welter family on Kings Road is one example.

They lit a fireplace for warmth, which Mom Debbie said “was very helpful.”

When it came to entertainment, they improvised. The first night, she recalled, the family watched DVDs on the laptop until the batteries ran out. Then they turned to old-fashioned ways to keep entertained, but board games and coloring only worked until it began to get dark.

Then they turned in. “I definitely got more sleep in the last three nights,” she said.

Although power came back Monday around 4 p.m., they still had no Internet or phone because a tree fell on the Verizon line to the house. They have been told not to expect a repair until Nov. 12.

That created another issue. Son Matt, a Madison High senior, had a deadline of Monday night to file early action college applications. “Without the Internet, we were really in trouble,” said Debbie. They traveled to a relative’s home in Lopatcong and, according to Debbie, “he hit submit in time.”

And daughter Marli gets to have a double Halloween; having trick-or-treated with her cousins in Lopatcong, she will also participate locally on Friday.

While Debbie described getting around Madison over the weekend as “very hard” because of the downed trees and wires, several stores managed to keep their doors open – even without power.

For Frank Iannarone of the Madison Pharmacy, staying open was the only option. “You have to. It’s a service. People count on us,” he said, adding that the store services some assisted living facilities.

The pharmacy was open on Sunday with no power at all, relying only on generators.

“We were freezing our butts off,” he said, commending the full staff of eight who came in to work in gloves and hats. “They were awesome. It’s a good group of people.”

He estimated that the pharmacy sold about 100 prescriptions while power was out.

Once power returned Monday afternoon, he said, “A lot of people thanked us. It’s a good town. We have a lot of great customers.”

Coviello’s also reportedly was open for part of the time, selling firewood.

Amrish Vakil, owner of Main Street Wine Cellars, reported that the shop was open until about 6 on Saturday and opened both Sunday and Monday, assisting customers from the front door.

“We’re always open. We do it for our customers,” he said.

He acknowledged that the storm “did significantly impact our weekend and holiday business.”