BROOKFIELD -- Friday marks day three of storm cleanup in Brookfield, and officials say they are making progress following Tuesday’s macroburst.
“It’s really moved along,” said Brookfield First Selectman, Steve Dunn.
Brookfield saw winds up to 110 miles per hour on Tuesday, which brought down tress and power lines across town.
“I think we got up to about 80 percent of our roads cleared, Thursday,” said Dunn. “The utilities are coming in, Eversource is coming in, and starting to re-power up.”
Officials say the 74 percent of customers who woke up in the dark on Friday will have the lights come back on soon.
“A majority of our power will be on by Sunday at noon,” said Dunn. “They (Eversource) said originally about two weeks, so that’s really good news.”
But since many people are still without power, they are turning to generators, which police warn have been the source of a few almost fatal accidents.
“We had another incident Thursday night where a gentleman was suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning,” said Brookfield Police Chief, Jay Purcell.
At least five other people have been taken to the hospital for carbon monoxide poisoning.
“We are also experiencing problems with improperly assembled generators,” said Purcell. “Some of the fuel lines are backing up, they’re not properly clamped on, we did have one fire yesterday… so everybody please use caution.”
Officials continue to monitor traffic signals as most are not functioning. Meanwhile, clean up crews are still clearing the roads.
“We hope to get the bulk of the streets cleaned, and we will move forward,” said Chief Purcell. “It’s progress.”
The Connecticut National Guard is also helping out in a few towns, including Brookfield.
“We are in constant communication with local and state emergency operations officials as our crews safely assist other agencies hard at work helping those in need," said Maj. Mike Petersen, Director of Public Affairs for the Connecticut National Guard.
A small community rocked by a big storm, but not wavering in the slightest when it comes to rebuilding.
“Our first responders, our volunteer fire fighters, police, and ambulance are just amazing” said Dunn. “They just have been here 24/7 over the last five days, even though a lot of them have suffered tragedies in their own homes.”
Neighbors are doing their part as well.
“Everybody’s chipping in, and its just been fantastic,” said Chief Purcell. “From the local businesses right down to even towns people dropping off gift cards, and water, and things of that nature.”
But those who know Brookfield say it is nothing uncommon.
“Residents of Brookfield are really resilient, and work together and help each other,” said Dunn.