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Connecticut prepares for Nor'easter that will bring heavy rain and winds

FOX61 is forecasting 2-4 inches of rain Tuesday with 40-50MPH winds possible

HARTFORD, Conn — So far, this October has been very warm. Now it’s about to get very wet.

Residents and utility companies are anticipating an October Nor’easter for Tuesday, that meteorologists forecast will dump up to four inches of rain and bring 40-50 mph winds.

Some simple measures to take the could ease residential flooding include cleaning debris from storm drains if it’s safe to do so. It’s also a good idea to bring in any patio furniture and make sure pool covers are attached securely. 

Eversource told FOX61 News on Monday that they are ready for Tuesday’s Nor’easter.

“We're at a level five alert status right now which is the lowest of the five levels," company spokesperson Frank Poirot said. "With that, we can get outages that could go up as high as 125,000 customers with 3,000 trouble spots.”

FORECAST: Ready the rain gear: A strong Nor'easter develops on Tuesday

Additional crews from three other states will be called in by Eversourse if necessary.

“They can be here within hours and we can easily and quickly deploy them to wherever the hardest-hit areas are. In addition to that, we do have crews on standby. Contractor crews that we can bring in to help with tree and electrical damage,” explained Poirot.

In addition to their usual tree trimming and power line inspections, Eversource said they’ve deployed smart switch technology.

“If a limb does fall on one of our lines it helps our system operators isolate where the trouble spot is and restore as many customers as possible," Poirot said.

One of the biggest concerns heading into Tuesday is that many leaves still remain on the trees.

“With the leaves on the trees, it increases the wind load that a tree has to take. A 40-mph wind in January will have a very different impact than a 40MPH wind will in October,” explained Poirot.

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Rio Gutters and Trees told FOX61 it doesn’t take much for leaves, sticks or animal nests to block gutters and back up water into people's basements.

“It is good to have all the gutters cleaned so people don’t get water damage and basements overflowing," owner Luis Pereira said. "So taking care of that is a good idea now.”

“We did clean the gutters yesterday, yes we did. So the gutters are cleaned out and now we’re just waiting to see how much rain," Anita Alford, of Bolton said.

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After having her private road washed away by the floodwater following Tropical Storm Henri in August, Alford is grateful a new bridge has been built on Mark Anthony Lane.

“They put rocks on the side so it should be fine and we won’t have a big rush of water coming through," she said.

The same can’t be said for Ambassador Road in Manchester, where the town just recently gave the OK to repair the washed-out section that condo owners have been dealing with for months.

“We have to walk all the way around. Hopefully it will be fixed by winter," Jackie Sullivan said.

Matt Caron is a reporter at FOX61 News. He can be reached at mcaron@fox61.com. Follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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