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July 19, 2008

Storm rips through Chazy

Trees, power lines fall to 60-mph gusts

By KATELYN MOCKRY

CHAZY -- Thousands were left without power after a severe thunderstorm ripped through Chazy Friday afternoon, knocking down trees and power lines in its path.

According to the National Weather Service, winds measuring up to 60 miles per hour whipped across the Clinton County region during the 15-minute storm that started around 3 p.m.

The fast gusts of wind only lasted seconds during the storm, but enough damage was caused to leave fire, highway and police crews at the scene for several hours cleaning up the wreckage.

"We have several crews dealing with the destruction all over the place," said Chazy Assistant Fire Chief Craig Bosley.

In addition to the Chazy Fire Department, West Chazy and Champlain fire departments, Clinton County and Town of Chazy highway departments, Chazy State Police and the Clinton County Sheriff's Department all assisted with the aftermath.

One of the hardest-hit spots was along Miner Farm Road, which was closed Friday evening.

Uprooted trees and power lines covered the area between Olena and Ridge roads.

Steve Fessette, director of Physical Plant at Miner Institute, described the damage as worse than the Ice Storm of 1998.

"It's a war zone," he said. "Those winds didn't last long, but still managed to knock down hundreds of trees."

Destroyed trees included "old-growth trees" that dated more than 100 years old, he said.

"There was also a garage literally split down the middle by a huge fallen tree," Fessette added as he assessed the damage with workers at the Miner farm.

Several Chazy residents were unable to access their driveways due to debris left by the storm, including Alice Perry who was entertaining out-of-town guests at her home on Lake Shore Road when the storm hit.

"It just came so fast," she said. "The rain was pelting down, and there was hail, thunder and lightning. It was terrible and scary."

After the storm passed, Perry said she looked out her window and noticed a "big black circle," which turned out to be a large, uprooted tree on her front lawn.

"The hole is big enough to fit a hot tub," she said.

Crews continued to work on the damage through Friday evening.

The National Weather Service is expected to analyze the effects of the storm this weekend, said Meteorologist Brooke Taber.

"We're going to do a damage survey to get further details on the situation."

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