Cleanup continues across South Shore & Cape following fall nor’easter

COHASSET, Mass. — The nor’easter aftermath left Cohasset missing some of its quaint. Generators and wood chipping machines could be heard echoing around town. Cohasset fired up its Emergency Operations Center to help coordinate the cleanup and power restoration.

The town manager said the lack of power is their biggest problem. Town Manager Christopher Senior told us the restoration is a tricky process because of the electrical grid setup.

“It’s not like the town just flips a switch. We are fed in four different directions, so it makes it complicated,” Senior said.

Cohasset Fire Chief Robert Silvia was also at the Emergency Operations Center meeting.

>>>MORE: Nor’easter: Power crews working to restore electricity to thousands

“24 hours a day it is being worked on, so it is going to happen, but for some folks it just won’t happen as quickly as they would like,” Silvia said.

Town Selectman Jack Creighton said the damage was severe.

“Trees and power lines and power poles were coming down like match sticks, we have never seen anything like this,” Creighton said.

Because Cohasset has power transmission lines coming in through towns hit just as hard, the restoration is complicated.

“We have a 100% of Scituate out and 100% of Norwell out, which means we are 100% out,” Senior said.

Getting around town is also a major hurdle, with obstacles around every turn. Elyse Ryan lives near the center of town.

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“We had no access even if a fire department had to come in or the ambulance, there was no way to get in and out; there is elderly people on the street,” Ryan said.

Hillary Thomet and her family are here on holiday from France. They came here specifically for Halloween so their two boys could experience it.

“There were a lot of big trees that have obviously fallen down, so it is crazy and, especially with all the power lines down, it seems dangerous,” Thomet said.

National Grid is the provider for Cohasset, and the town says they are working with a specific liaison as they coordinate the restoration. But there is still no hard timeline when full power will be back on.

Eversource released a list of estimated times of power restoration on Thursday night. Those wishing to see when their community is expected to get power back can click here.

Power returning slowly to the Cape

Lights are gradually coming back on across Cape Cod but are still tough to find in many areas. Bourne and Falmouth remained in the dark in many areas and Thursday most businesses were unable to open with no power. The nor’easter packed a punch there.

“Trees are down everywhere, trees are lying on power lines everywhere. We’re just doing the best that we can,” said Brian Keefe of Falmouth.

In Bourne, ferocious winds sent a massive tree limb into Holly Moore’s house.

“A huge branch from a maple tree [...] fell and it landed on my house,” Moore said.

And to make matters worse, she may not have electricity until next week.

“They were saying nothing until Monday as far as power,” Moore said.

Then just try finding gas on the Cape.

“I had to go across the bridge to Wareham to get gas. All the way up to Carver for gas,” she said.

She’s not alone. The hunt for gas was an all-day affair for many. And the stations open were few and far between.

“I drove by a few stations and just seemed as though lines got longer and longer, and finally found one open and the line wasn’t too long,” Keefe said.

While some areas are beginning to get power turned on, many parts of the Cape are still in the dark while utility crews work around the clock to get the lights back on.

‘Hopefully, it’s back on by the time I get back to the house but we’ll see. I think we made it through OK, all things considered,” Keefe said.

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