CRANSTON — As Hurricane Henri whirled and wavered its way toward Southern New England on Saturday afternoon, Gov. Dan McKee urged Rhode Islanders to brace for a multiday event that could mean days without electricity for some residents.
While the track of the hurricane had shifted west, McKee said Rhode Island was still expecting “serious impacts from the storm,” including damaging winds, significant flooding, a storm surge along the coast and “extended power outages.”
“I want Rhode Islanders to really hear that. We are now preparing for a Category 1 hurricane. … So we consider this a serious matter and want everybody … to consider it serious as well.”
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During an afternoon news briefing with his team of emergency response officials, McKee said he and other governors had spoken via phone with President Joe Biden and urged federal assistance for “days and weeks” to come after the storm had blown through.
The shifting western path of the hurricane means Rhode Island will be on the east side of the eye where winds are at their strongest, said Marc R. Pappas, state director of Rhode Island’s Emergency Management Agency.
“So we can expect storm surge and power outages,” said Pappas. “This is an ever-evolving situation. The cone vacillates back and forth constantly. Even a slight change in the track can have a big impact on the state of Rhode Island.”
Pappas said this wouldn’t be just a coastal storm; inland communities could be hit hard as well. “So we all have to heed the warnings and prepare.”
Pappas said the Army Corps of Engineers would likely lower the gates of the Fox Point Hurricane Barrier, the 700-foot-long concrete and steel structure that protects downtown Providence from a tidal barrage of water.
McKee said the American Red Cross would be opening up five shelters around the state starting at 8 p.m. Saturday.
Those five regional shelters will be at Providence Career & Technical Academy on Fricker Street, Pilgrim High School in Warwick, South Kingstown High School, John L. McCourt Middle School in Cumberland, and Joseph H. Gaudet Middle School in Middletown.
State Police Col. James Manni said troopers Saturday had reported large numbers of cars moving south toward South County even after the department had encouraged sightseers to stay away.
“Instead, there have been traffic jams from Route 95 all the way to South County,” Manni said
Consequently, Manni said the state police had contacted most of the region’s police chiefs asking that they restrict access to some coastal roadways to residents only to curb sightseers. Those road restrictions would begin at midnight Saturday, hours before the storm is expected to come ashore Sunday morning.
Manni said the travel restrictions would allow first responders and National Grid crews into the areas “to do their jobs” as well as keep would-be sightseers safe.
“We have had issues in the past – people swept out into the ocean, especially in Narragansett,” where Manni served as town manager prior to becoming head of the state police.
Manni said the road restrictions would be in place in “high-visibility roads” in places like Matunuck, in South Kingstown, Westerly and Jamestown.
As of midafternoon Saturday, Pappas said officials were expecting a storm surge of between 3 and 5 feet along the coast. In comparison, superstorm Sandy, which caused extensive damage in Westerly’s beach enclave of Misquamicut in 2012 saw a 5-foot storm surge.
National Grid President Terence Sobolewski said the utility had 230 line crews, 100 forest crews and 1,000 personnel standing by for deployment in southern New England.
But Sobolewski said it could take between 12 and 24 hours to complete damage assessments to determine where those crews would begin repairing power lines. In past storms consistent high winds have delayed crews from working from elevated buckets.
Email Tom Mooney at: [email protected] or call, 401-277-7359
