All our first responders are safe and accounted for and there were no major incidents in town.”

John King, Portsmouth Emergency Management Agency

PORTSMOUTH — Anyone who’s seen the videos of severe flooding in Massachusetts’ coastal communities knows that Portsmouth and other East Bay towns dodged a bullet Thursday.

“We were very fortunate,” said John King, director of the Portsmouth Emergency Management Agency. “The power stayed on for everyone. All our first responders are safe and accounted for and there were no major incidents in town.”

That there were no major issues was no accident, Mr. King said.

“A lot of planning goes into all this ahead of time,” he said.

Early Friday afternoon, Department of Public Works Acting Director Brian Woodhead and other members of his staff were grabbing a few well-deserved hours of shuteye.

“The guys worked 36 hours,” Town Administrator Richard Rainer, Jr. said Friday. “I sent everybody home about 11:30 a.m. this morning. As needed, people will be called in because the wind is blowing at a pretty good clip. The snow removal process went fine; it was just blowing so much and so fast they had to stay on it.” 

One of the biggest problems the town had during the storm was with the heater at the police station, he said. “That kept kicking off yesterday.”

Mr. Rainer said the town received many compliments regarding its blizzard response. However, like with every snowstorm, there were also a few complaints.

“The biggest complaints I’ve been getting today from residents have been about the amount of snow left at the foot of their driveway,” he said, referring to the berm created by plows that pass by homes.

He’s also heard from a few residents who live on private roads. People who live on these streets must arrange for their own plowing, he said.

“I’m sorry, but we don’t plow private roads. However, if we need to get in there when it becomes a first-responder issue, of course we send the appropriate people to do it,” Mr. Rainer said.

Transfer station delays

Mr. Rainer said some residents were also unhappy with the situation at the Hedly Street transfer station, which wasn’t opened until noon on Friday because it took time to clear the snow out.

“With the blizzard conditions, we had nine-foot snow drifts and people were upset this morning: ‘Why wasn’t this taken care of ahead of time?’ Well, because the wind didn’t stop blowing until 7 o’clock this morning. It took them a while to get it cleared out. That’s fine, now,” he said.

The town was also dealing with ice that had built up in the rear vehicle lane inside the transfer station building. That lane had to be closed off until the ice could be removed, he said.

Mangled mailboxes

Some mailboxes take a beating from plows during most snowstorms, and Grayson was no exception. Some of the mailboxes that took the most serious punishment were located along East Main Road, between Dexter Street and St. Paul's Episcopal Church. East Main Road is maintained by the R.I. Department of Transportation.

“That happens on the town’s side as well,” said Mr. Rainer, adding that both the town and the state have programs which replace most mailboxes that are damaged by plows.

The town won’t replace a “high-end mailbox,” Mr. Rainer noted. “You’ll get a standard, 4-by-4 wood-post mailbox,” he said. 

Anyone who lives on a town road who wants to make a claim should call the Department of Public Works at 401/683-0362.

If you live on a state road and your mailbox was damaged by a state plow, you may be eligible for a replacement box or reimbursement up to $50 to repair a broken box or post. Call 401/734-4817 or visit its website.