Select Board Emergency Meeting
August 30, 2011
Minutes of an emergency Select Board meeting to address the unexpected road damage caused on August 28 by tropical storm Irene. (Note: these minutesm, recorded by the secretary, have not yet been approved by the Board)
Present: Henry Minasian, Chair; Linda Giner, and Sandi Pierson (clerical).
Absent: Dorothy Behlen Heinrichs (was out of town).
Others present: Road Agent Frank Giner, Emergency Management Director Brent Stevens, George White, Bob and Judi Kuhn, Bob Ells, Bob and Sharon Proulx, Bob Slattery, and David Como.
Meeting called to order at 7:00 PM. Attendance taken by the secretary.
Numerous photos taken by the road agent and Henry Minasian during and after the storm were available to the public by way of a laptop computer.
Henry gave a comprehensive overview of the damage. He stated that given the severity of the storm and what other towns have sustained, the majority of roads in Orange were in extraordinarily good shape following the storm. The Board applauded the road agent’s management of water runoff strategies prior to the storm. The Board also praised the spirit of community involvement with neighbors helping neighbors during the storm, especially addressing immediate impassable road damage with their own equipment.
Damage assessment from the storm:
- Town House Road: minimal to no damage.
- Tug Mountain Road: ditch line erosion; culverts partially plugged; road is passable. It was noted that the newly reclassified section of road (0.6 miles per the March warrant) held up incredibly well and the residents in the area had already addressed a minor washout.
- Cardigan Mountain Road: This is a state-maintained road. The area at the bridge near Orange Basin was compromised and there were areas of the road that sustained substantial ditch erosion, especially heading up to the state park. Bob Proulx reported that the NH D.O.T. has already addressed the damaged and the road is passable.
- New Colony Road: degree of ditch line erosion; road is passable.
- Peaslee Road: minimal damage; 50 to100 feet of ditch line erosion; road is passable.
- Burnt Hill Road: This is one of two roads that sustained substantial damage. Along with the expected ditch line erosion, a tributary of Mill Brook coming down from the Cardigan Mountain tier was so forceful and massive that it displaced a large bridge culvert and continued unabated thus creating a wide and deep channel through the road. Residents on the southeast portion of the road had vehicle access from their homes via Gifford Hill Road in Grafton.
- River Road: The only real issue was the overflow of a culvert creating a section of road initially only passable by a 4x4. When the rain subsided, Bruce Ells adequately repaired the section with his farm tractor for the passage of all vehicles. The Board thanked the Ells family for their assistance.
- Brock Hill: Marginal erosion due to overflow of culverts; road is passable. The steep part of the hill sustained no damage due to road shoulder work recently done by the road agent as a previous FEMA project.
- Tuttle Hill: Two hundred feet of ditch line severely eroded; road is passable.
- Cross Road: the road was temporarily shut down for an hour during the storm due to a culvert cave-in. Thanks to the effort of resident Carl Thompson, temporary repairs were made and the road was made passable.
- Skyland Road (200 feet in Orange is Class V): No damage because two culverts were recently replaced with a larger size and corresponding swales were dug.
- Williams Road: Severe damage due to the torrential overflow of Orange Brook which skirts the southern terminus of the road. The lower section of Williams Road was essentially reduced to a rock-filled river bed. This road was impassable and was the only road in Orange where the residents had no outside vehicular access.
The Board discussed appointing a Select Board liaison to work with the road agent and emergency management director on a daily basis while the road damage is being addressed. Linda stated that since Henry is in town during the day and has already done a comprehensive inspection of all the roads, it would be practical to appoint him as the liaison. Henry stated that because Dorothy was unable to attend the meeting, the liaison appointment should be temporary so that she can voice her input at the next Board meeting. After discussion, Linda motioned to appoint Henry as the temporary liaison to work on a daily basis with the road agent and emergency management director to address the road damage caused by the storm. Henry seconded. Motion passed unanimously in favor.
At this time the floor was given to Road Agent Frank Giner for his assessment of what work must immediately be done, the costs, and a general timeline of the repair of all damage. Frank stated that there was about $40,000 left in the high 2011 highway budget. Though the town expects FEMA reimbursements will pay for damages specifically caused by the storm, this funding is not immediately available. Frank stated that he plans on expending up to $20,000 toward the storm damage which will leave $20,000 for winter maintenance. At this time his objective is to immediately target the Williams Road and Burnt Hill situations and then begin to stabilize all roads that are in hazardous conditions.
Frank stated that contractor Bob Senter is going to volunteer some help on the Burnt Hill bridge washout. Bob has a gravel pit on Burnt Hill which he currently cannot access via Grafton. The provisional plan for Brock Hill is to put the culvert back into the brook, build stone headwalls, and then gravel it over so the bridge is approximately twelve feet wide. Bob Slattery offered to volunteer his time and equipment to address a smaller washout northwest of the bridge. Frank thanked Mr. Slattery and will provide the gravel necessary for the repairs.
Frank addressed the Williams Road situation. It was noted that the residents have skirted the impassable road via an abutting field which is their only access out. Frank stated that because the washed out section of road was paved, despite the cost and time, the asphalt debris must be removed per the state’s protocol and cannot simply be used as fill. He plans on the asphalt debris being removed by a backhoe the following day [of the meeting]. He then expects to start laying in bank run gravel to create an interim one-lane roadway so the residents on the road will have access to Tuttle Hill Road. Due to the high cost of material and the removal of the asphalt debris, Williams Road will be the more expensive of the immediate storm-related repairs.
Frank stated that when the FEMA funds are received by the town, the comprehensive, permanent repairs will begin on all roads. Until then, he urged the townspeople to use extra caution while driving on the roads.
The floor was turned over Emergency Management Director Brent Stevens. Brent reported that Cardigan Mountain State Park was assessable and open. He recapped a conference telephone call that he had with a representative from FEMA. They are urging people to report home damage by dialing 2-1-1. It is unclear at this time if there will be a reimbursement to property damages but that residents should report it in case there is. Brent gave the FEMA representative a complete report of utility outages, residents left without outside access, and the road damages. He stated that FEMA will be sending assessment teams out to our area on Thursday [September 1]. Brent stated there has already been an incident with unsafe generator usage. He urged all people to take the utmost caution when using a generator to provide power and to adhere to the safety guidelines.
Linda stated that this was a very stressful time for the general area and that Orange has been blessed with no loss of life during the storm and less property and road damage compared to other towns. She stated that a coworker’s home was completely swept into a river in Hartland, Vermont. She also thanked Pat White for notifying the residents of tonight’s emergency Select Board meeting.
Brent, Frank, and Henry will meet at the town house the following day to begin preparing quotes and reports for FEMA.
Public comment:
- Tax Collector Sharon Proulx stated that the town has received $29,539.30 in unanticipated funds (not targeted toward the 2011 operating budget) from the payment of 2008 and 2009 tax liens. She said that this could be used to help pay for the damaged roads. Henry said they will use it only if necessary because he would prefer that the unanticipated funds be used to offset property taxes.
- Bob Kuhn submitted to the Board a disk containing storm-related photos and video that they could possibly use for their FEMA reports.
- Judi Kuhn complimented the workers that recently cleared the utility lines and said that it probably prevented additional damage.
- Bob Proulx expressed his appreciation of how well the road agent, emergency management director and the Select Board have been working together to address the storm damage.
Meeting adjourned: 8:00PM.