NEW: Mayor Taveras Activates Providence’s Emergency Operations Center
Monday, October 29, 2012
On a conference call with reporters this morning, Mayor Angel Taveras and Providence Emergency Management Agency Director Peter Gaynor announced that Providence's Emergency Operations Center (EOC) was activated early this morning, and said that a representative from utility provider National Grid is embedded at the EOC.
Having a National Grid representative working directly in the EOC will enable the utility company to receive immediate reports of power outages and fallen power lines in Providence and to communicate directly with first responders and other city personnel throughout the duration of the storm.
Mayor Taveras confirmed that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers closed Providence's hurricane barrier shortly before 7 a.m. in advance of a morning high tide that will push water up the Narragansett Bay and into the Providence River in the hours before Hurricane Sandy is expected to make landfall on the Mid-Atlantic seaboard.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTProvidence's South Street flood gates are scheduled to be closed early this afternoon in advance of the evening high tide, and individual street closures will be posted on the city's website at www.providenceri.com.
Decisions regarding Tuesday school closures, trash pickup postponement and parking bans will be announced this afternoon.
Mayor Taveras advised residents who have not assembled emergency supplies to use flashlights and batteries found at home and to fill containers with water at home, and asked all residents to keep off the roads if possible.
The Mayor also asked residents to check in on neighbors, especially the elderly and those requiring special assistance.
The City of Providence is utilizing social media to ensure that all Providence residents have the most current information on the storm:
On Twitter: #PVDSandy, @PEMA591, and @Angel_Taveras
