Today marks the official one-year anniversary when Connecticut residents woke up to torrential rain, high winds and trees toppling under the weight of Tropical Storm Irene.
The storm blew through the state with winds at 60 mph, leaving over 700,000 homes and businesses without power and two deaths, as well as road closures, downed wires and property damage.
In the year since the storm hit, towns have taken more emergency preparedness steps. They’ve put money away for potential disaster situations, and revamped training in case another major weather event occurs.
The state has also implemented drills through the Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security, on those emergency initiatives.
And, hopefully, residents have learned to take the necessary precautions when a big storm impacts the region, like stocking food and supplies properly.
One year after Irene hit, are we better prepared than we were before? Take our poll and share your thoughts in the comments.
Energy independence can be achieved, we're living proof. We have friends that recently built a 2,200sf house and they too are almost, totally energy independent; geothermal heat/cooling and solar water heater. They're planning on adding additonal solar panels, an inverter and large battery bank next year.