MONDAY, AUG. 19, 2024 — Wilton, like much of CT, was hit by historic rainfall over the last 24 hours, that Wilton Emergency Management Director Fire Chief Jim Blanchfield unofficially put at over 8 inches. Town response began on Sunday afternoon, Aug. 18, as water crested at Arrowhead Rd., displacing at least one resident, and closing roads all around town.
Blanchfield detailed some of the response with Wilton’s fire, police, CERT, EMS, Department of Public Works crews and more responding to flooding and severe damage, including water over roadways that closed Rte. 7/Danbury Rd. in three places and extensive damage to the Wilton High School Fujitani Field and athletic complex, as well as to businesses in Wilton Center.
GOOD Morning Wilton was in touch with Blanchfield multiple times throughout Sunday afternoon and evening, and again beginning early on Monday morning. He said extra personnel were working to respond to the damage.
In addition, he said that alerts were sent via the town’s e-alert system and the town’s new alert system, Everbridge.
However, some residents took to social media to complain that they didn’t hear very much at all, specifically citing the fact that no streets with closures were identified by name, only that “multiple streets” were closed. They also mentioned no messaging sent from First Selectman Toni Boucher.
GOOD Morning Wilton asked Chief Blanchfield about the town’s response and Boucher’s presence. He told GMW:
“Blanchfield: I can only speak to the alerts: We did continue to send, we used two platforms for announcements. We did send out our E-alerts, which we’ve done in the past, and those went out. And we also used the new, Everbridge platform as well. I anticipate that not as many people have signed up for that yet, but that will continue to be a robust way to get alerts out. But we did send them out on the E-alert system as well. We can always work on that, and we are in the process of working on the Everbridge system rollout.
“What we do after any significant event, we end up having an after-action review, and certainly messaging will come up, and we’ll discuss different ways to do it. The town is discussing possible social media avenues and things of that nature too.
“[First Selectman Toni Boucher] was there. She was there since the beginning of this, working with all department heads to make sure there were enough resources available. And was making sure everybody had what we needed to have a good response here in Wilton. And I know she’s working hand in hand with the state presently as well.”
Messages were sent via e-alerts throughout the past 24 hours as follows:
Sunday, Aug. 18:
- 2:58 p.m. “Urgent: ROAD CLOSURES”: “Be advised, multiple road closures in town. Residents are asked to drive with EXTREME caution. Do not attempt to cross flooded roadways. Full road closure list will be coming out shortly.”
- 4:58 p.m. “WEATHER ADVISEMENT: Significant Flooded In Town”: “WEATHER ADVISEMENT: There is significant flooding all throughout Town. Please be advised there are multiple road closures due to the flooding. We strongly recommend everyone stay off the roads as much as possible until the flooding subsides. Thank you for your patience!”
Monday, Aug. 19:
- 10:57 a.m.: “08/19/2024 Storm Update”: Good Morning, At this time, most roads in Wilton are open since yesterdays storm. Residents are still asked to drive with caution as debris and water may still be present on roadways. As always, do not attempt to drive through flooded roadways Thank you for your cooperation.”
- 11:11 a.m. Duplicate message as above, titled “Storm Update 08/19/2024”
- 11:19 a.m. “Field and Facility Closures Due to 8/18 Storm”: Please note the following fields are closed today, Monday August 19th
- Nick Madaras
- WHS Stadium – Track and Field
- Guy Whitten
- Comstock
- All Baseball and Softball fields
- All other fields are open as of 1:00 pm
- Merwin Meadows Park is closed until further notice
We are in the process of assessing the damage at the stadium and have contacted both a track company and the field turf company for assistance. We will update you with a timeline as further assessment is completed.
Thank you for your patience while we clean up from this storm.
GOOD Morning Wilton emailed First Selectman Boucher for a comment regarding complaints some residents have expressed online that they did not hear from her directly.
“We have been very busy. Here is the press release I just completed. I am always available for a phone call at any time. I was at Town hall up until 10:45 pm last night and had my cell with me,” she wrote to GMW.
The Town released the following update at 1:18 p.m. Monday afternoon:
Message from the First Selectman:
The Town of Wilton received over 8 inches of rain in a 7-hour period yesterday, causing the Norwalk River to overflow, which shut down Route 7 in three locations. The Saugatuck River in the Newtown Turnpike area of Wilton also overflowed to a similar degree. Wilton’s Emergency Operation Center (EOC) has been open since Sunday afternoon and will remain open until all safety concerns related to this event have been cleared. During the storm, the Town updated the public with real time information through the Wilton website e-alert system, as well as through the Everbridge platform. Information will continue to be sent to the public through these emergency alert systems.
The numerous messages sent throughout Sunday’s serious rain event are primarily generated by our dispatchers, who are simultaneously manning the 911 and non-emergency phones, dispatching police and fire response teams, and keeping the community informed with updates. They did excellent work throughout the many hours the storm rained extreme levels of precipitation, fielding emergency calls from residents who were impacted by weather related emergencies.
During the storm, this is how Wilton emergency services personnel responded:
- Police, Fire and the DPW all brought in extra crews during the storm
- CERT crews operated multiple road closures throughout the storm
- Some families were advised to evacuate their homes until the water receded, and fire department crews are currently determining if residents who did evacuate are able to safely re-enter their homes.
Thankfully, there were no injuries, but there is plenty of property damage.
The state’s Emergency Management Center has asked municipalities to capture and track all the damage to local government infrastructure and transportation infrastructure, including roads, bridges, and railways, as well as the costs associated with this damage. Wilton is already at work documenting the impact the storm had on our town. The Wilton Police Department, the Department of Public Works, Parks and Rec personnel, as well as the State Department of Transportation, are out surveying affected areas.
Many of Wilton’s athletic fields were seriously damaged.
The Town is currently assessing the extent of the damage and has already filed insurance claims where appropriate. But, given the storm damage across the state, there will likely be a backlog of claims for the insurance companies to process.
The State EOC will maintain their Enhanced Monitoring Mode until further notice. Our office is aware that town services were stretched, as Fire and Police responded to significant flooding dangers. We are grateful to our local first responders for their quick action and many hours of hard work. We also send our thanks to residents who provided aid to their neighbors.
Gov. Lamont called early this morning to check on the state of our town, its residents and our commercial business. He offered whatever resources we may need to restore Wilton. I am thankful for his outreach and that of our state elected officials for their support and concern.
As far as current conditions are concerned, Wilton has no street closures and no injuries or missing people to report. Many of you have reached out asking how you can volunteer. As soon as all of the assessments are completed, we will have information on how to sign up for any town-wide effort, depending on what is needed. Thank you in advance for your offers of help.
Please note that flooding can lift manhole covers up to 3-4 feet and are dangerous, so please, for your own safety, do not attempt to drive through flooded roadways.
If anyone needs emergency assistance, please call 9-1-1. For any other non-emergency questions, please contact the Wilton Police Department at 203-834-6260.
Thank you and stay safe.
Toni Boucher
First Selectman
Town of Wilton
Wilton is fortunate to have such a tested leader as First Selectwoman !! Thank you Toni for your service !!
I agree with Jonathan. She’s serving the people of Wilton. She ran unopposed. The town needs more people willing to step up, run for office and do the work.
A lot of the carping seems to be coming from people who didn’t sign up for alerts. As for not listing which roads exactly were closed, it was a fluid situation (pun intended) with more roads becoming impassable as the day wore on. The overarching message was to stay home and not drive ANY roads. GPS traffic apps like Google Maps showed Route 7 closed. If people absolutely had to go out, there were Wilton PD officers and CERT volunteers manning detours.