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Community Corner

911 Should Only Be Used For Life Threatening Issues During Hurricane Irene

During the height of the storm emergency vehicles may have difficulty navigating the roads.

As Madison prepared to hunker down in anticipation of Hurricane Irene, First Selectman Fillmore McPherson urged people to use extreme caution when calling 911 during the storm.

“Don’t call 911 unless you have an emergency, a real emergency,” said McPherson.  And what is a real emergency?  “A life threatening emergency,” he stressed.  He did clarify, though, that during the height of the storm emergency vehicles may have difficulty navigating the roads.

“If we’re in tropical storm winds, around midnight, there’s not a lot people can do,” he said.  “We’re not going to be able to send out ambulances and fire trucks and police cars in the middle of all this.”

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Before reporting to the town control center, which will open at noon Saturday, McPherson strolled through downtown to double check that shop keepers are moving all their outdoor furniture inside and everyone is prepared for wicked weather heading our way.   

“This is not a dress up affair,” said McPherson dressed in jeans, a plaid shirt and baseball cap.  “You gotta wear your work clothes to something like this.”

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Standing near Café Allegra’s porch dining area McPherson said he stopped in just to remind them to clear the porch in preparation for the storm. “I think they know that, but I just wanted to remind a few people.”

“We’re telling people who are evacuating that they should be evacuate by sundown tonight,” said McPherson.

Since the tropical storm is not scheduled to hit until about midnight McPherson said some eating establishments and maybe the movie theater may stay open late.  

“They should probably err on the side of safety, he said. "I don’t imagine they’re going to get any customers tonight.  So if I were them I’d buckle up.”

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