New City Neighborhoods Dealing With Uncertainty

Only 12 out of the 80 homes surrounding Lake Lucille have power.  Those are the ones closest to South Mountain Road in New City. The rest are dark thanks to Hurricane Sandy and have a service restoration date of Nov. 11.

Lake Lucille Property Owners Association President Bill Terribile said trees knocked down power lines, which are now being watched over by National Guard troops, who arrived on Sunday.

“We lost a tremendous amount of trees,” he said on Monday. “The tree trimmers were here for three days straight cutting up trees.”

Water is an added concern of the residents. 34 homes rely on a community well that has no electric service.  Terribile said they have been running a generator to operate the well. He said they do not want to burn out the pump or run out of gas so the generator has been shut off nightly from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m.

Another group of residents on the southern end of Lake Lucille have their own private wells, which are not working either. They are using buckets of lake water to flush their toilets.

Terribile is worried.

“I have no backup plan for these people,” he said. “I am afraid if the pump takes another surge it may put us out of business. I need help for these people.”

Terribile said his neighbors have contacted O&R about their situation. On Monday, he reached out to Clarkstown Supervisor Alex Gromack and today plants to call other government officials and also the American Red Cross to request a water tanker truck.

Other nearby homeowners in the area of Old Route 304 and Cranford Drive are also apprehensive.  The predicted Nor’easter on Wednesday could bring more rain and wind and their homes backup to a stream blocked by fallen trees and debris.

Cragmere Oval resident Mike Lehner alerted Clarkstown and Rockland County officials to the blockage near the culvert, which he thought could wind up flooding Cranford Drive, Cypress Street, Cragmere Oval, Bush Court and other adjacent streets if there is a heavy rainfall.

Clarkstown officials said late Monday that a contractor had been hired to clear the stream and would begin work Tuesday morning.