News stories tagged with "keene"

(01/02/12) 2012 is officially underway, but for towns along the Ausable River, there's still a lot of work ahead cleaning up from the floods of 2011. Communities were hit hard by heavy spring rains last year, and then slammed by tropical storm Irene in late summer.

Brian Mann checked in last week with Bill Ferebee, town supervisor in Keene. Ferebee says a lot of progress has been made restoring normalcy in the Ausable Valley. But fears remain that more floods could come next spring.

(12/09/11) William Luce's one-woman play celebrating the life and poetry of Emily Dickinson, The Belle of Amherst, will be presented in a special performance benefiting residents of the Town of Jay who experienced the devastating effects of Tropical Storm Irene this summer. The one-woman show will be performed Saturday night (7 pm) at BluSeed Studios in Saranac Lake. Todd Moe talks with Jay actress Kathleen Recchia, who reprises her role as Dickinson for this special performance, about the show and clean-up efforts that still continue this month.

(11/29/11) A group of Burlington College students will conduct oral history interviews to record the Tropical Storm Irene stories of Jay and Keene residents this Saturday at the Keene Community Center. Everyone is invited to share their stories and memories. Instructor John Warren told Todd Moe that participants will be asked a number of questions about their experiences during the storm, and will have the chance to tell the stories they think are important to remember. To schedule your interview, contact John Warren via email at jnwarrenjr@gmail.com or call 518-956-3830.

(11/09/11) Musical headliners in the Adirondacks will do their part this Sunday to raise money for those still rebuilding homes and businesses in the aftermath of late summer storms. Many of the best-known Adirondack acoustic musicians will gather at the Indian Lake Theater (2 pm) to perform some of their favorite music to benefit victims of Hurricane Irene. Todd Moe spoke with Johnsburg singer-songwriter Tom Akstens, one of the organizers of the concert. He calls the event a celebration of Adirondack spirit.

(10/07/11) The Keene Valley Congregational Church hosts an evening of music, stories and poetry Saturday night (7:30pm), and an opportunity to help those still rebuilding from the summer floods.

Adirondack harpist Martha Gallagher will host the benefit concert. Her home was one of the many heavily damaged by the flooding from tropical storm Irene.

Saturday night's concert, arranged by the East Branch Friends of the Arts, will also mark the release of a new CD that Gallagher recorded recently to benefit flood victims. All the proceeds from the concert and CD will go to the Keene and Jay Flood Recovery Funds. Todd Moe has a preview.

(10/06/11) It'll be all things rutabaga on Sunday in Keene. Not even a tropical storm could keep this Adirondack community from celebrating the obscure vegetable. The 4th-annual Great Adirondack Rutabaga Festival was supposed to be held last month, but flooding forced organizers to put the event on hold until the community could recover. Laurie Davis, Adirondack Harvest coordinator, says the festival, one of only two in the country, was the idea of former Adirondack Harvest board chair Tom Both.

(09/13/11) New York Governor Andrew Cuomo was in the Adirondacks once again Monday morning, this time to announce the reopening of state Route 73 outside Keene Valley.

Appearing in the tiny hamlet of St. Hubert's, Cuomo was joined by Joan McDonald - commissioner of the state Department of Transportation - as well as local and state lawmakers.

Cuomo stressed that reopening Route 73 is vital to the area's economic health, especially with fall foliage season right around the corner.

Chris Morris was on hand for Monday's ribbon cutting and has this report. more

(09/08/11) State officials are urging homeowners and businesses to get the ball rolling on filing insurance claims following Tropical Storm Irene.

Benjamin Lawsky is superintendent of New York's Banking Department, which will become the state Department of Financial Services following an October merger with the state's Insurance Department. He was in Essex County Wednesday to meet with elected officials and survey damage left behind by Irene's wake.

State Senator Betty Little was also there to update town officials on steps she's taking to alleviate the financial burden that's been heaped upon flood victims. more

(09/05/11) Gov. Andrew Cuomo plans a return to the Adirondacks this afternoon. He's scheduled to come to Keene at 2 pm, as part of his "Labor for Your Neighbor" flood recovery project.

New York Senator Charles Schumer visited the North Country yesterday to view flood-stricken communities along the Ausable River. According to the Plattsburgh Press-Republican, Schumer stopped in Keeseville, Black Brook and Jay.

He urged local residents hit by tropical storm Irene to sign up with FEMA, the Federal agency that is helping with individual assistance payments. A FEMA office has been opened in the town hall in Ausable Forks.

Meanwhile, over the weekend clean-up efforts continued, with the help of National Guard troops and huge numbers of volunteers.

(08/31/11) Roughly 20-percent of Vermont schools are delaying the start of classes because of damage from Irene. Most of the delays are because of washed out roads and damaged bridges that make it impossible for students to get school safely.

But few - if any - schools in New York are opening late.

Julie Grant reports on how New Yorkers are working to get schools, businesses, and homes back to normal after the storm. more