Rye Officials Prepare for Storm

City employees have started preparations in anticipation Sandy’s arrival in the next couple of days. Crews are clearing catch basins, securing loose items, ensuring construction sites are secured, clearing sewers of obstructions and battening down the hatches throughout Rye and Rye Brook. Both the city and village have advising residents to be prepared for the storm.

Workers will be continuing their preparations throughout the weekend and working over time, City Manager Scott Pickup said.

“This storm might be different than past storms because it is a mix of a high tide and full moon tide. We could have a horrible combo of wind, rain, flooding and coastal flooding,” Pickup said.

Flooding and power outages are the biggest problems the City of Rye faces during a large storm, Pickup said.

“It is still sort of up in the air what is going to happen on Monday and Tuesday,” Pickup said.

But he and city officials have already had conversations with Con Edison, who told him that they have extra crews coming in from around the country to be on standby for expected power outages next week.

ConEd crews might be active as early as Sunday, Pickup said.

One of the most important things Pickup wants the public to remember is that the water is not safe. After the storm, residents tend to go out into the water, which is mixed with contaminants. Also, if storm drain covers come loose the water could suck people into the holes. Pickup warns residents to stay out of the water and be careful. 

If you take photos of the storm or its aftermath, have them featured on Rye Patch by emailing them to elizabeth.giegerich@patch.com.