Ted Halpin, Madison County Emergency Manager
On July 13, a strong thunderstorm struck north central Madison County. This storm triggered a significant number of emergency responses by fire, police, EMS, public works and utility companies.
911 did an incredible job handling 436 emergency calls in a three-hour period. Responders to these emergencies handled emergencies for downed wires, fallen trees and property damage. As a result of this damage, many local roads needed to be temporarily barricaded for the safety of these workers and the public.
The Madison County Office of Emergency Management reminds the public that actions taken by emergency response agencies are taken for safety reasons and not to intentionally inconvenience anyone. During this recent event, several members of the traveling public ignored the directions of emergency personnel. In some cases even harassed the emergency responders for doing their duty protecting the public.
Emergency responders will have knowledge of the actual hazards present and it is their duty to do their best to protect the public. Citizens who ignore safety signage, road barricades or the directions given by emergency personnel can place themselves at grave risk. Citizens who ignore these safety measures also increase the likelihood of injury or death to first responders and highway and utility workers.
The Madison County OEM reminds you that you can receive emergency notifications by enrolling into NYAlert at https://users.nyalert.gov. You can follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MadisonCoNY_EM. Useful disaster information can be secured at https://www.madisoncounty.ny.gov/em.