By Mark Scott and Mark Wozniak
Buffalo, NY – Heavy winds in the region knocked out power for up to ten thousand National Grid customers Sunday. Utility officials expected to have electricity restored by this morning. The National Weather Service recorded a peak gust of 60 miles per hour early yesterday morning in the town of Barker in Niagara County. More tree branches and limbs did come down during the wind, but there was no major upheaval like there was during the unexpected snowstorm of October 12th and 13th.
The Salvation Army played a key relief role in the aftermath of this month's surprise snowstorm.
Thousands of out-of-town utility workers, tree removal specialists and members of the New York National Guard came to the Buffalo area in response to the storm. And since the Sunday after the storm hit, the Salvation Army has been making sure these workers were provided for with hot meals and beverages. Director of Operations John Hagelberger says the Salvation Army dispatched three mobile feeding units or canteens each day into the hardest hit areas.
Hagelberger said Salvation Army volunteers passed out cleaning kits and hygiene products as well. Even last week, when power had been restored and life was returning to normal for most, Hagelberger said the Salvation Army was there for workers involved in the ongoing debris removal effort.
In addition to the Mobile Feeding units, the Salvation Army took care of residents in need of shelter at its Main Street complex in Buffalo.
Hagelberger said they haven't tabulated the full cost of the relief efforts, but that it will probably top $50,000.
Mayor Byron Brown is urging parents to accompany their children on trick or treat Halloween activities. Brown notes that there are still piles of brush and debris on many streets and sidewalks in the city from the storm earlier this month, and that parents bring along flashlights and use extreme caution.