“This honor is well-deserved. Congratulations to BMW of Bridgeport’s ownership and staff for winning this coveted award,” said Mayor Finch. “We’re proud to have such a highly regarded establishment right here in Bridgeport, providing customers from throughout the City and the area with highest level of service.”
A Superior Court Judge ruled that Mary Jane Foster will be reinstated on the Democratic ballot primary for mayor in the City of Bridgeport. The primary has been moved from September 13th to September 27th. No word at this time on the fate of the candidates for education. Foster’s attorney said they are still reading through the thirty four page ruling.
Mayor Bill Finch joined U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal as he stopped in Bridgeport Thursday morning to obtain an up-close look at the aftermath of Hurricane Irene. “After being hit with a storm unlike any we’ve seen in the City’s recent past, we’re happy to show Sen. Blumenthal the progress we’ve made thus far in our recovery efforts,” said Mayor Finch.”Bottom-line for Bridgeport: leadership was performed and produced. Leadership that was matched by the community; the volunteers, the Red Cross, community organizations all came through, with the police, fire, emergency responders. It is a great story of people coming together in a common cause and I want to particularly thank Mayor Finch for his leadership at a time of adversity,” said Sen. Blumenthal. “I’ve been all around the state, Bridgeport performance was unexcelled in the way it protected its people and produced leadership for its citizens.”
During the City of Bridgeport’s door-to-door mandatory evacuation efforts, approximately 13,000 residents or 4,700 households were reached by the team of 135 fire, police, city officials and other volunteers. The City’s two shelters, Bassick and Harding High Schools housed nearly 700 evacuees including 18 dogs, two cats and a turtle. The City of Bridgeport assisted with the delivery of 3,108 meals, 1,500 snacks and 1,172 bottles of water to locations that large numbers of functional and access needs residents resided.
After a briefing at the City’s Emergency Operations Center, Sen. Blumenthal joined Mayor Finch, City officials and emergency personnel staff on a boat ride through Bridgeport Harbor to view damage caused by Hurricane Irene.The storm, which hit at astronomical high tide on Sunday, left Seaside Park and much of the South End under several feet of water after dropping 6.5 inches of rain on the City and clocking top winds of 60 mph at Sikorsky Airport. More than 120 streets suffered some form of storm damage ranging from flooding, to downed trees and/or wires. At one point during the storm, 35,000 UI customers were without electrical service. As Thursday morning, approximately 3,200 households are still without electrical service. Pre-assessment damage costs are estimated to be nearly $10 million dollars.
In his remarks on Thursday, Sen. Blumenthal pledged to, “fight as long and hard as necessary for funds to compensate Bridgeport and every city and town in the state of Connecticut for losses we’ve sustained.”
Mayor Finch added, “I’m confident that Sen. Blumenthal, along U.S. Rep. Jim Himes, will do everything he can to secure the necessary federal aid for those who have felt the impact of Irene in their homes and neighborhoods.”
Hurricane Irene Assistance Tips
Charge Laptops, Medical Devices at City Libraries;
Find Help with Food, Clothing, Reporting Damage, Cleanup Kits
BRIDGEPORT, CT (September 1, 2011) – Following are some assistance tips for City residents to use in the wake of Hurricane Irene. The information is provided in English and Spanish.
Charging centers: If you are still out of power you can charge your computers, cell phones, or medical devices at any of the Bridgeport libraries. Library hours are as follows:
| Location | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday |
| Burroughs-Saden Main Library 925 Broad Street Bpt., CT 06604 203.576.7403 |
10-8 | 10-8 | 10-8 | 10-8 | 10-5 | 10-5 |
| Newfield Branch Library 1230 Stratford Ave. Bpt., CT 06607 203.576.7828 |
12-5 | 10-6 | 12-8 | 10-6 | 12-5 | Closed |
| North Branch Library 3455 Madison Ave. Bpt., CT 06606 203.576.7003 |
10-5 | 12-8 | 10-5 | 12-8 | 10-5 | Closed |
| Black Rock Branch Library 2705 Fairfield Ave. Bpt., CT 06605 203.337.9676 |
10-5 | 12-8 | 10-5 | 12-8 | 10-5 | Closed |
| Old Mill Green Branch Library 1677-81 East Main St. Bpt., CT 06608 203.576.7634 |
12-5 | 10-6 | 12-8 | 10-6 | 12-5 | Closed |
Food: If you currently receive aid for food (e.g. food stamps, senior food vouchers, WIC) your cards for September have been preloaded and can be used immediately. If they do not work please contact your caseworker. If you need urgent assistance because you are in a target area and you cannot get out to purchase food due to hurricane damage please call Bridgeport EOC to request assistance or to find location of nearest food pantry. For information call the EOC 203.579.3829.
Damage Claims: For any one with hurricane damage or claims please refer to your caseworker- or any social service agency you have current contact with. This is the fastest way to find assistance. You should take photos of any damage.
Flood damage- clothing: If your home has been flooded and you need replacement of clothing or small household items you can go to The Community Closet at FSW Inc. CT, 475 Clinton Ave, Bridgeport, Connecticut 06605. FSW needs a referral letter from a social service agency for you to use the Community Closet. They are open Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. -2 p.m. For more information call 203.368.4291.
Flood damage – property: If your property has been damaged and you rent, or do not have flood insurance, or if you are concerned that your home may not be safe please contact the Bridgeport Health Department’s Housing Unit. They will send someone out to ensure your home is safe. Please call 203.576.7072.
Clean up kits. Will be distributed in the Fire Department Headquarters parking lot (30 Congress St, Bridgeport) on Saturday September 2, 2011. Times to be determined – please contact the EOC for more information. 203.579.3829.
If you have damage or other urgent needs and do not have a caseworker or social service agency that you are working with please contact Bridgeport Department of Social Services at 203.576.8411.
[SlideDeck id=’494′ width=’100%’ height=’400px’#Bridgpeport–North Bishop and Rosedale calls of fire turn out to ]
State and LOCAL road conditions are posted in real time on the right side bar.
UI Outages as of 11:25–Fairfield-3,100 Bridgeport -2,427 Easton-1,717 Trumbull-1,589 Stratford-1,599 and Milford-839
Fairfield Warde High School and Fairfield Ludlowe High School 9th grade orientation will go on as scheduled, Friday 9/2/11. Elementary meet and greet cancelled, grade 6 orientation cancelled.
Bridgeport’s Mayor Bill Finch announced today that the City’s Transfer Station will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. through Saturday, Sept. 3, due to Hurricane Irene.
The Cingari family, of ShopRite supermarket is the location of the Police Command Post (Black Rock Turnpike in Fairfield). It is staffed with emergency personnel and volunteers coordinating the distribution of ice donated by the Cingari family, water and flashlights. The quantity of distribution to each household will be limited to 2 bags of ice and 3 one liter bottles per day.
BRIDGEPORT — The Lake Forest Association clubhouse, the venue for countless wedding receptions, showers and other functions since the 1950s, burnt nearly to the ground early Wednesday morning. Read more…..
Progress reports from senior executives Senior Vice President Tony Marone and Vice President William Reis of United Illuminating. They ask if you have an outage or concern to call at 1-800-7-CALL-UI (1-800-722-5584) or visit them on the web at https://www.uinet.com/wps/portal/uinet/home
An impromptu driving tour of the damage of Fairfield Beaches. You are actually on a Fairfield Fire Department Bus with the media getting a tour from Assistant Fire Chief Christopher Tracy. A more detailed ground tour with Governor Malloy will be uploaded shortly.
State Representative Tony Hwang met with senior executives from United Illuminating to discuss the priorities the company takes in restoring power to local communities after the devastation of Hurricane Irene.
