Malloy, Himes Visit Fairfield's Storm-Ruined Homes

FAIRFIELD, Conn. — Andreas Fuchs got far more visitors than he expected Tuesday morning. Fuchs owns one of the three Fairfield Beach Road homes condemned by the town because of the damage from Tropical Storm Irene.

As he and his wife packed up what they could, Gov. Dannel Malloy and U.S. Rep. Jim Himes stopped by for a chat. Tagging along with them were dozens of TV and newspaper reporters, checking out the damage Irene dealt to the area.

“You have to give Mother Nature some credit,” Malloy said. “She’s pretty powerful.”

The Fuchs family left their home before the storm with their dogs and headed to Fairfield’s disaster shelter. When they returned Monday, they found their home pushed nearly into the inlet just north of their deck.

On Tuesday, once they finally got permission from the building inspector to go inside, the Fuchses loaded all they could into a van. For now, they’ll be staying at a pet-friendly hotel in Westport with their five rescue dogs. “The good news is, it’s a small house, so there’s not that much stuff,” Fuchs joked.

Fairfield’s building inspectors declared their house one of three unsalvageable after the storm. They deemed another 20 in the Fairfield Beach Road area unsafe because of concerns with downed utility lines and possible natural gas leaks.

On his website, Himes offered advice to homeowners such as Fuchs recovering from the storm. He advises residents to document all damage, including photos. If insurance companies do not cover some of the losses, Himes said disaster relief funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency could come to the state. The agency will “begin accepting applications shortly.” More information about federal agency aid is available at its website.

In the meantime, Fairfield continues to wait for United Illuminating to finish restoring power. The company made a dent in the town’s outages, dropping them from more than 13,000 Monday night to 9,533 by Tuesday evening. But 40 percent of Fairfield was still without electricity.

The town also needs UI’s help to clear its roads. The Department of Public Works has to get clearance from the utility before working on fallen trees surrounded by power lines. Police Chief Gary MacNamera said this is because backup generators might kick electricity back into the public lines.

Still, the town cleared a few more major roads Tuesday, including North Benson Road. “Chainsaws are in motion,” MacNamera said. “Work is getting done.”

How are you dealing with Hurricane Irene’s aftermath? Send your stories and photos to gcanuel@thedailyfairfield.com.

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