Fierce Wind Leaves Multiple Downed Trees, Poles Across North Fork

SOUTHOLD, NY — Heavy rains and fierce winds left a trail of downed trees and poles across North Fork roads, and Southold Town highway crews were hard at work Monday clearing debris.

Southold Town Highway Superintendent Vincent Orlando said flooding was not an issue during Sunday night's heavy rains.

"The drainage was working; it was fantastic," he said.

But, Orlando added, "There are trees down all over town."

Crews were out since 10 p.m. Sunday night, working until sunrise, cutting up trees and pushing them off to the side of the road. Cleanup continued Monday as crews went back to pick up the tree limbs and also remove new felled branches, which came down as the wind picked up again.

There were four downed poles in one area of Mattituck alone, Southold Town Supervisor Scott Russell said.

Traffic was detoured Monday afternoon through parts of Cutchogue where other trees had fallen.

"The storm came as no surprise. That's why it is disappointing that PSEG has been so slow to respond," Russell said. "I realize that there is damage to the infrastructure throughout the island, however, they were given more than enough warning to prepare. In Southold, it was a significant storm event overnight, which means no sleep for our emergency management operations team. However, we made it through safely."

Sunday night's storm left hundreds without power across the North Fork.

PSEG crews are working to restore power, said Elizabeth Flagler, media representative for PSEG Long Island. "Since the storm began, crews have been working 16-hour shifts to restore power to all customers affected. Since midnight Sunday, PSEG Long Island has completed approximately 365 jobs that affected approximately 68,000 customers. We have a full complement of crews working to restore power safely and as quickly as possible to the remaining customers affected. It is forecasted to continue to be windy into the afternoon, which may cause additional outages. Additional crews will be arriving from PSE&G New Jersey to provide assistance with PSEG Long Island's restoration efforts," she said.

Patch courtesy photos.