On Long Island, snowstorm preparation met cooperation

Congratulations Long Island! We survived the historic blizzard of '26.

This is what can happen when preparation meets cooperation. 

No doubt we got lucky on the Sunday overnight into Monday timing. Advances in weather forecasting allowed enough time for an effective governmental response to the record snowfall. From the beginning, county executives Edward P. Romaine in Suffolk and Bruce Blakeman in Nassau, along with town officials, were consistent and specific in their messaging: Stay off the roads. The travel bans made all the difference, allowing snowplow crews, whose praises should be sung, to work effectively and efficiently.

Most residents listened. Stranded drivers and accidents were fewer than in previous big snowfalls. The Long Island Rail Road wisely shut down service. And despite Long Islanders' existential dread of losing power, the lights stayed on for most. 

With remote work well established, many businesses could permit employees to log in from home. Schools made an early call for a Monday snow day, while Tuesday's remote learning demonstrated how flexible the region has become since the pandemic transformed our routines.

That's not to say there aren't local streets and places where the response could have been better. Daunting piles of snow still need to be navigated and who knows what fresh horror could come from a quick melt of it all. Equipment needs to be repaired, overworked employees rested, costs tallied. While memories are fresh, however, it's a good time to build on how this storm's challenges were successfully met.

The LIRR's decision about stopping service early and slowly restarting it along the railroad's 700 miles of track is rooted in past unfortunate decisions to keep trains running. In a December 2009 snowstorm a Ronkonkoma-bound train broke down, leaving 150 people stranded for hours without electricity or working toilets. Passengers made videos pleading for help, and several threatened to break windows and escape. In January 2016 the LIRR, trying to get commuters home, stopped service too late, stranding 10 trains and about 1,000 people. In this storm, the early call and surprisingly effective communication from the LIRR about its plans served us well. 

In August 2020, PSEG, which operates the region's electrical grid, had a meltdown with Tropical Storm Isaias. More than 500,000 customers lost power for up to a week and the utility failed to adequately respond to outages. With an extension of its contract threatened, PSEG focused on tree maintenance and storm hardening of its equipment. This time, strong winds hit the more sparsely populated East End the hardest, and most of the 50,000 reported outages were repaired in 24 hours. The lack of ice forming on trees and wires Islandwide also worked to their advantage.

Resilience isn't built overnight but through planning, teamwork and a community willing to listen and work together.

More flakes, storms and cold temperatures swirl in the weather models for the days ahead. Yet, the promise of spring awaits. Just three more weeks — we've earned it.