Webster, NY– Mayer’s Marina on Irondequoit Bay is submerging under high water this spring. No immediate relief is in sight which puts public service workers on high alert. Photos by Ove Overmyer, CSEA ©2017
WNY– Spring flooding is nothing new to many folks who live along the border towns and hamlets of Lake Ontario’s southern shoreline. However, the people most affected by recent flooding are striking a somewhat more pessimistic tone when it comes to being able to protect property values and maintain some resemblance of normalcy this year.
By all accounts, major coastal flooding will continue well into summer with no significant relief in sight. While government officials and residents cope with Mother Nature and the cards they have been dealt, public service workers from both state and local municipalities have stepped up big time to help ease the burden of area residents.
State and town DOT employees, state and county parks crews, public safety officers, 911 operators and others have been working around the clock to assist the most vulnerable citizens affected by the flooding and high water.
Lake Ontario, from one end to the other, is swollen to its highest point since 1993. Bouts of strong winds have eaten away huge chunks of shoreline and sent waters surging into shoreline homes. Last week, Governor Cuomo declared a state of emergency along the entire lake shoreline. The declaration also allows state agencies to expedite permits so that those who need to work to protect their property from the flooding can do so without delay.
Farabell
Tim Farabell, a CSEA Town of Irondequoit Public Works employee, said he and his co-workers have been working plenty of overtime of late. On May 6 at the E. Ridge Road Operations Center, Tim and fellow co-worker Tim Appleton were assisting neighbors with sand bagging and helping other residents with additional resources. Appleton said, “We have had a steady stream of people show up looking for sand to protect their homes. We are glad we can provide this help.”
“Ever since the fire in our DPW barn last Christmas, we have been dealing with one crisis after another,” said Farabell. He added, “If it isn’t fires, it’s a snow storm, or a wind storm. Now we have this major flooding issue that is keeping us extra busy. There are no dull days here.”
Farabell explained they have handed out almost 5,000 sand bags in the last 48 hours from the E. Ridge Road Operations Center. The Town of Webster has also doled out more than 10,000 sand bags in recent weeks.
CSEA Monroe County Local President Bess Watts has made an extra effort to reach out to membership during the flooding. Watts told the Work Force many CSEA members are working their tails off making sure residents are getting the services they need.
Watts said, “I have visited work sites in the towns of Webster, Irondequoit and Greece and CSEA members are doing a remarkable job considering the circumstances. Tempers are short. Nerves are frayed. People are scared. But our members continue to deliver on their promise every day to preserve property values and create a safe and high quality environment for town residents and businesses alike. The work they are doing right now is just extraordinary.”
-Ove Overmyer
