Windy weather came with a force on Saturday, December 11, 2021.
Throughout Northumberland County, emergency services along with work crews were busy kept busy trying to keep up with the calls for service.
Emergency services including all of Northumberland County area fire services, Northumberland OPP, hydro crews and Works Department staff in various townships and municipalities were extremely busy trying to keep up with the calls coming in.
Today’s Northumberland travelled around numerous townships and along the lakeshore.
In Cobourg, the inner harbour was extremely rough with white caps. A few people ventured out onto the east pier, but didn’t go very far out either by choice or the high winds.
Later, a Coast Guard vehicle was placed across the entrance of the pier to hopefully discourage pedestrians from venturing out.
Cobourg Fire Department attended an address on Spencer Street East and removed a piece of eavestrough that was hanging from an apartment building.
Banners on a perimeter fence at the corner of Albert and Division Street in Cobourg broke free. A street light was the only reason the metal fence didn’t fall onto the roadway.
On Community Centre Read west of Baltimore a fallen tree blocked the westbound lanes of the roadway. Two men tried to clear the road, but Hamilton Township Works Department arrived on scene to remove the tree.
Further to the east at on Community Centre Road at Payn Road a limb resting on wires caused a small fire. Members of Hamilton Township Fire Department stood by the area to ensure sparks didn’t ignite the grass.
At the Cold Springs Hall in Hamilton Township a communications tower was destroyed after it buckled and fell in the parking lot.
Danforth Road West in Hamilton Township was closed for a period of time after a tree fell blocking the road.
Further to the north on Williamson Road, Hamilton Township Works Department crews stood by and waited for hydro crews after two trees toppled onto hydro wires which blocked the road.
In some areas where hydro lines were taken down, emergency services could only stand by and blocked the roads waiting for hydro crews.
On Rice Lake Drive North, just north of downtown Bewdley a tree fell blocking the roadway. Hamilton Township Works crews cleared the road by hand along with heavy machinery.
Just to the north on Rice Lake Drive North at Valleyview Crescent a number of communication poles snapped causing the lines to hang low to the ground.
Police tape was placed around the wires and the road was blocked off until further notice when crews can come and repair the damage.
With emergency services doing the best they could to block roads, the ingenious award of the night has to go to the families on Boomerang Road north of Grafton in Alnwick/Haldimand Township.
When a large tree toppled across the road taking down hydro wires with it, two neighbours were worried about people who may not see the downed tree until it was to late.
A OPP cruiser was blocking one section of road, but at the time there was no emergency vehicle available for the other side.
Being the Christmas season, the neighbours placed flashing Christmas lights on the downed tree hoping it would alert oncoming drivers.
There were many other incidents involving arcing wires and downed trees throughout the area with crews working well into the morning but there were no reports of injuries or major damage.
Author: Pete Fisher
Has been a photojournalist for over 30-years and have been honoured to win numerous awards for photography and writing over the years. Best selling author for the book Highway of Heroes - True Patriot Love
