By Bonnie Adams, Government Editor
Region – Here's information to help you ride out the rest of the storm and beyond.
Shrewsbury – SELCO officials said they are well prepared for Sandy. Residents should report any outages by calling 508-841-8500. Residents may also follow SELCO on Twitter at @SELCOnews or text “Follow SELCOnews” to 40404. Please do not report outages via Facebook, Twitter or email.
Westborough – Officials are advising if it becomes necessary to evacuate to the Westborough High School as a shelter because of power outages, please bring your own pillow, blankets and towels. An emergency kit containing personal care items and medications should be prepared ahead of time. Port a cribs for small children will be allowed in. There are outlets available for charging cell phones and laptops. Parents should bring small play items to entertain children.
Residents should call the Police Department (508-366-3060) or Fire Department (508-366-3040) first to check to see if it is open.
Westborough will be advising residents via a new AM Emergency Radio Notification system (1610 AM). Social media (@WestboroPolice and @WestboroFD on Twitter) and FaceBook will be utilized as well.
The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA)? offers a free “ping4alert!” app that you can download to your Smartphone to receive weather alerts and messages. Go to www.mass.gov/mema/mobileappp
for download instructions.
Updates will be also posted on the Twitter account, #MASandy. You may also dial “211” for assistance.
Other websites with important information include:
Mass. Department of Environment Protection – http://www.mass.gov/dep/floodcleanup.htm – tips on how to properly dispose of debris after the storm
The main MEMA website -? http://www.mass.gov/eopss/agencies/mema/.
National Fire Protection Association –
Preparing for a storm – http://www.nfpa.org/categoryList.asp?categoryID=791&URL=Safety%20Information/For%20consumers/Emergency%20preparedness
Generator safety tips –
National Grid – https://www1.nationalgridus.com/StormNotifications.
You may also register for broadcast text alerts by texting STORM to NGRID (64743)
Check to see where power outages have been reported and what the status is:
https://www1.nationalgridus.com/PowerOutageMap-MA-RES
National Weather Service (National Hurricane Center)? – www.nhc.noaa.gov
National Weather Service (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) – ?http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/#SANDY
National Weather Service forecast office for the Boston area – (You can click on this map to get specific town forecasts.) http://www.erh.noaa.gov/er/box
NSTAR: http://www.nstar.com/residential/storm_center/default.asp
Planning to help keep your pets safe – http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/animal_rescue/tips/pets-disaster.html