Freezing cold temperatures and a coating of snow over parts of the state are causing problems on the roads this morning.
Interstate 84 in Tolland was closed early this morning because of slick roads, Interstate 91 South in Windsor is at a standstill right now by exit 38A/B and there is a water main break in South Windsor.
The problem is black ice on the roads covered by a coating of snow from snow squalls last night.
I-84 in Tolland has reopened between exit 68 an 67 after icy conditions caused the highway to be shut down for more than two hours early Tuesday morning.
State Police said slick roads prevented dozens of tractor-trailers from making it up the hill causing the highway to be closed.
The DOT was called in to treat both sides of the highway and the roads reopened just after 4:30 a.m.
Drivers are advised to take it slow and keep speeds down.
"One second it's dry, (a) 100 feet later it might be liquid, another 100 feet, it might be frozen, so if you're going in to that at high speeds, you're going to be in big trouble," Kevin Nursick, of the state Department of Transportation said last night,
The water main break in South Windsor is on Beelzebub Road near Norton Lane in South Windsor and there and reports of a sink hole.
CT Water Co arriving at scene of the So Windsor water main break. 0650 1/7/14 pic.twitter.com/5ib7PZUEv8
Weather is also responsible for flight delays and cancellations. Delays and cancellations at Bradley Airport are caused by weather conditions in other parts of the country, specifically the Midwest, airport officials said.
Thirteen flights scheduled to leave Bradley Airport have been canceled. Four others are delayed. Eleven arrivals have been canceled and four are delayed.
So many people stepped forward to help the victims of a devastating fire in Shelton in yesterday that volunteers are now needed to help sort through them.
Five people were rushed to the hospital after fire broke out at 446 Howe Avenue around 11:45 p.m. on Sunday. The more than 100-year-old building that housed six businesses, as well as apartments, collapsed during the blaze.
The fire took everything residents owned, according to a Shelton firefighter, who didn't want to share his last name, and the Shelton community is doing its part to help.
"I have a bunch of clothes for the people who need them," said Carly Hajducky. She and her mom, Jody, donated bags full of toiletries, coats and more. "I just think it's important you give back to a community for everything that it gives you."
"There's people in need and we certainly have a lot to give," said Jody Wilson, Carly's mother. It's good to show the kids that we need to be part of a community."
Firefighters said the outreach started on Facebook and grew.
"It's the nature of the business of volunteers helping one another and just people in general helping people," said Kevin, a Shelton firefighter.
Melissa Buckley, the sister of a volunteer firefighter, helped sort through the clothes.
"It's actually very nice to see that there's such an overwhelming amount of support from the people in our community wherever they came from," Buckley said.
Kristen Ostrowksi volunteered for her community.
"I don't think this would ever happen to be honest," Ostrowksi said. "You saw everything with Sandy Hook and everyone came together for that. I mean I've been a part of Shelton my entire life and it's pretty incredible, it's awesome."
Fire marshals said the were picking up their investigation on Tuesday morning because it got too dark Monday. Then they can determine what started this fire.
Volunteers are still needed at 379 Coram Ave. to sort through the donations.
The ING Hartford Marathon in October brought more than $14 million, according to a new report.
The Hartford Marathon Foundation commissioned the study and Witan Intelligence, Inc., a research and strategic planning company, found that spectators, participants and volunteers for the 20th ING Hartford Marathon spent more than $9 million at area hotels, restaurants and stores.
They added in ‘indirect spending’ on payroll, goods and services to reach the $14.1 million total.
This is a 26 percent increase from the year before, which is attributed to the larger crowd of 75,000 people.
“The exponential growth of the Hartford Marathon over the last 19 years has been supported by so many local businesses as well as town and community services. We are proud to help contribute such a positive impact back to the businesses and communities that have welcomed our race participants, volunteers and spectators year after year,” Beth Shluger, executive director of the Hartford Marathon Foundation said in a statement. “Our event has gained national exposure on the race circuit, we are excited to continue to grow and prosper together with our supporters.”
The report also showed that most people, 94 percent, said they were “Highly Satisfied” with the event, up from 86 percent in 2012.
The 2014 marathon will be held on Oct. 11.
The Hartford Marathon Foundation is looking for a new title sponsor for the annual event.
"We are grateful to have built such a strong, valuable brand with the Hartford Marathon. We are very optimistic about securing another great partner to help support the continued success of the event and the resulting positive economic impact," Shluger said.
Route 31 in Coventry is closed after a two-car crash this morning.
The crash happened between 9 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. and snapped a utility pole in half. It will take around eight hours to repair and minor injuries reported.
Connecticut Light & Power has responded.
To get around the closure, use North River Road at one end and Talcott Hill Road on the other side.
The frigid cold weather is affecting rail travel and almost all Amtrak trains coming into Union Station in New Haven have been delayed.
Chris Improta is heading to Boston, but his Acela train was delayed for more than two hours on Tuesday.
“I would have taken a bus and saved some money if I knew there were going to be so many delays,” he said.
In New Jersey, overhead wires failed and Amtrak crews spent the day repairing a 20-mile section of the Northeast Corridor in Connecticut.
Because of the extreme cold weather in the Northeast, Amtrak is operating on a modified schedule on the Northeast Corridor between Washington and Boston, as well as the Empire Line between New York City and Albany today.
Just before 3:30 p.m., Amtrak sent out another notice saying they will continue to operate on a modified schedule on Wednesday because of the cold.
Amtrak said tools, including Amtrak.com, smartphone apps and 1-800-USA-RAIL, can assist in travel planning.
If you paid but choose not to travel due to the service disruption, you can receive a refund or a voucher for future travel.
Call 800-USA-RAIL or visit Amtrak.com/alerts for Service Alerts and Passenger Notices.
Metro-North has also warning of possible delays during the evening commute and said dropping temperatures can affect switches and signals.
The Metropolitan District Commission is alerting customers about two people posing as water company employees attempting to enter homes.
On Tuesday, 7 two men claiming to be from the water company accessed a house on Fenn Road in Newington after telling the resident there was a water main break nearby and asking them to check the faucets in the house.
No additional information is available about the incident.
MDC is urging residents, especially those who are home during the day, to be alert for imposters by following these tips:
MDC field employees wear clothing and drive vehicles clearly marked with the MDC logo.
The MDC encourages customers to ask for identification from anyone who comes to their door. All MDC employees have photo identification badges and will gladly display them upon request.
The policy is “No Identification - No Entry.”
If someone comes to your door claiming to be from the water company and you do not have a previously scheduled appointment, do not allow access to your home until calling the MDC Command Center at 860-278-7850 ext 3600 to verify their identity.
If you have any doubt about the individual’s identity or motives, or authenticity of their credentials, do not allow them entry into your home and call the police.
Emergency crews in South Windsor, Hartford, Newington and West Hartford have been out in freezing weather for much of today, responding to water main breaks.
Water mains broke at 772 Trout Brook Drive in West Hartford, on Beelzebub Road South Windsor, at 170 Victoria Road and 151 Standish Street in Hartford, as well as 50 Forest Drive, Newington.
The water main in West Hartford was shut down at 4:20 a.m., affecting 12 houses between Park Road and Boulevard. Repairs have been completed, but road repairs are ongoing.
The water main break on Forest Drive has been restored, but affected 22 houses between Goodale Drive and Ivy Lane. The 8-inch main was shut down at 1:30 p.m. and service was restored as of 3 p.m.
The water main on Victoria Road in Hartford was shut down at 9:30 a.m. and 39 houses are affected between George Street and Franklin Avenue, according to the MDC.
It will take four to six hours to repair the break, so the estimated completion time is between 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.
The water main at 151 Standish Street was shut down at 10:20 a.m and service was restored at 12:45 p.m. Forty-one houses were affected between George Street and Franklin Avenue.
Twenty-four Connecticut Water Company customers were affected by the break in South Windsor, but water has since been restored and Beelzebub Road has reopened.
Police Chief Matthew Reed Tweeted that it will take about two more hours to repair the road, which would be around 3:30 p.m.
As of 1:30 water service has been restored after pipe repair in So Windsor. Road repair will take about 2 more hrs. pic.twitter.com/nXsN4MKTg8
A suburban jewelry store that offered thousands of dollars in refunds if it snowed three inches or more New Year’s Day was robbed Tuesday.
"We will not be open today, burglars broke into our store this morning," PK Bennett Jewelers posted on their Facebook page. "The police have been here, insurance has been here now we are waiting for the cleanup crews."
Mundelein Deputy Police Chief John Monahan said the incident was a typical "smash and grab."
Two thieves smashed the store's front door around 7:15 a.m. and took off with an unknown amount of jewelry, police said.
The thieves were caught on video, but officials could not detail what was seen on the cameras.
"It's an ongoing investigation," Monahan said. "Some evidence is still being reviewed."
The store's owners said they are cleaning up the mess but "will probably reopen [Wednesday]."
It was not immediately clear if the robbery was related to the promotion the store recently ran.
The store announced plans to refund more than $150,000 to customers who made purchases between Black Friday and Christmas Eve if it snowed more than three inches between midnight and noon on New Year's Day.
“Although we are extremely disappointed in the outcome of this promotion, we are very thankful for the support and fun it has brought to our customers and our business,” the jewelers posted on their Facebook page. “We are in the process of using several resources at our disposal to verify the measurement. If anything changes you will be the first to know.”
Reports showed O’Hare Airport recorded a total of 4.8 inches of snow Wednesday night.
Rich and Peggy Bennett said they were looking forward to the snow and a chance to give something back to their customers.
They even planned a “cash and champagne” event if the snow forecast came true.
“We are also going to a take a few days to digest this and will have more information to come,” the jewelers said on their Facebook page.
A South Florida woman accused of injecting people’s buttocks with Fix-a-Flat and other substances in an alleged black market business turned herself in to authorities Tuesday to begin serving her prison sentence.
Oneal Morris, 33, surrendered to authorities in Miami-Dade court to begin serving a one-year sentence on one count of practicing medicine without a license.
Morris, wearing a Nike hoodie, was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs.
Morris made national headlines when she and Corey Eubank were arrested in 2011 after several victims alleged Morris had injected their legs and buttocks with a mixture that included Fix-a-Flat, cement and superglue.
Prosecutors said in October that they were unable to determine the "mystery substance" that was injected into the victims.
In late July 2012, Morris, who police say is a transgender woman, was also arrested on two charges including manslaughter in the death of Shatarka Nuby, 32.
A Canterbury man is accused of sexually assaulting two girls he babysat nearly 10 years ago.
Shawn Keck, 41, is accused of making the sisters perform sex acts on him in 2004 and 2005. The girls were between the ages of 6 and 8 at the time of the alleged assaults, according to court documents. The alleged incidents happened while the sisters lived in Norwich and Jewett City.
The accusations came to light in April 2012 when state police were contacted by the Department of Children and Families. According to police, the girls disclosed the sex abuse during a counseling session. They were 12 and 13 years old when they wrote a letter to their mother, during the counseling session, police said.
The girls told police Keck would sexually assault them every time he babysat them.
The victims' mother told police that Keck was paid through a the Connecticut Department of Social Services' "Care 4 Kids" program for his babysitting. The program helps moderate income families cover the costs of child care, according to a state website.
Keck admitted to police that the girls touched him in an inappropriate manner, but denied ever making them perform sex acts on him, according to court documents.
He was arrested in March 2013 and has been held on bond. Keck appeared in court Monday, but his case was continued.
He faces four counts of first-degree sexual assault and four counts of risk of injury to a minor.
A 17-year-old Bridgeport teenager is facing charges after police said he robbed a 17-year-old West Hartford teen and his father at gun point after the two responded to a Facebook ad for sneakers.
Officers were called to Hollister Avenue in Bridgeport on Sunday after a father and son reported they had been robbed at gunpoint.
The victims told police that they had arranged to buy a pair of Air Jordan sneakers on a Facebook page called “Connecticut Sneaker Exchange.”
The victims traveled from West Hartford to Bridgeport and met with two males, one of whom was holding a sneaker box.
The teen victim said that he asked to look inside the sneaker box and the robbers pulled out handguns, ordered the victims on the ground and took their money and the teen’s cell phone.
Police brought the teen victim to a nearby school so he could access Facebook and he identified one of the teens involved from his Facebook profile picture, police said.
Detectives then searched the police mugshot database and found a picture of the suspect.
They located him in a home on Alex Street and said he had a BB gun in his jacket.
The teen was charged with two counts of first-degree robbery and sixth degree larceny and counts of risk of injury to a minor and brandishing a facsimile of a firearm.
Comcast Theatre in Hartford, which you might still refer to as The Meadows, has a new name. Starting today, it is now Xfinity Theater.
Comcast, the parent company of NBC Universal and NBC Connecticut, has a seven-year agreement with Live Nation for naming rights of the Hartford music venue. Today, they annouced a four-year extension through 2019.
“We are excited to lengthen our agreement with Live Nation and to place the name Xfinity on one of the most-loved entertainment venues in Connecticut,” Mary McLaughlin, senior vice president of Comcast’s Western New England Region, said in a statement.
Live Nation owns and operates the Xfinity Theatre, which can hold up to 25,000.
“We look forward to working with Comcast to make the newly rebranded Xfinity Theater an entertainment destination for people from across New England and beyond,” Jim Koplik, Live Nation president in Connecticut / Upstate New York, said in a statement.
Comcast’s sponsorship at the Toyota Presents the Oakdale Theatre in Wallingford, Connecticut is also changing to Xfinity branding.
"I am running for governor because I think we need to change state government," he said during the news conference this morning, adding that "we need to change the status quo."
Boughton referred to himself as a blue collar Republican, and said he was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth.
A peacock that escaped from a suburban Chicago zoo Tuesday and had its feet frozen to a tree while spending 90 minutes in below-zero temperatures has died from the cold, zoo officials said.
Blue, a male peacock that lived at the Randall Oaks Barnyard Zoo for at least five years, flew out of his heated pen and on top of a nearby pine tree Tuesday after he was fed and cleaned, according to Randall Oak’s park and division manager Brian Mangiaracina.
Staff attempted to rescue the bird but ultimately called the West Dundee Fire Department, which brought in a 100-foot ladder for the rescue.
The Assistant Zoo Manager Kristin Wuestenfeld was lifted up to the bird, whose feet had become frozen to the tree in the negative 12-degree temperatures, Mangiaracina said.
Once the bird was pulled from the branch, officials warmed his feet and put him under watch in a heated building for quarantine, Mangiaracina said.
But despite the attempts to save Blue, he passed away overnight, zoo officials said.
Officials believe Blue died from fluid buildup in his lungs developed during his time outside.
Police in Newington are looking for the man who they said committed a bizarre crime early this morning when he backed an SUV into a Connecticut gas station, stole a banana, ate and left in the damaged vehicle.
Police responded to the Citgo Gas Station, located at 502 Cedar Street, after a burglary alarm went off at 1:48 a.m. and noticed extensive damage to the doors, police said.
When they reviewed surveillance video, they saw a light-colored Ford Freestyle station wagon with Connecticut registration plates back into the store door several times and break the glass.
Then, a man went into the store, took a banana from a shelf, peeled it, ate the fruit and left the store, police said.
He man was not wearing a mask, did not try to conceal his face and did not take anything else, police said.
As you can see from the photo, the man was wearing a dark jacket, dark pants and a brown hat. He fled in the same car, which has damage to the driver’s side rear bumper and tail light.
Anyone with information should call Newington Police at (860) 666-8445.
The big freeze resulting from an Arctic weather phenomenon known as the polar vortex has affected 187 million Americans — more than half the country's population. It was loosening its grip Wednesday, but was sure to leave a lasting mark.
The record-shattering system pushed as far south as Georgia and Alabama and was blamed for at least 17 deaths, according to counts by NBC News and The Weather Channel.
Here’s what we’ve learned as a result of the rare chill:
The polar vortex exposed vulnerabilities in the U.S. economy -- and pipes everywhere
The vortex could cost up to $5 billion, NBC News reported. Why the huge price tag? Millions of Americans haven’t been able to travel to work, go shopping or vacation. Many may also have to pay more for their heating bill.
Blood supplies were at critical levels, The American Red Cross said, because about 240 blood drives had to be canceled in 23 states by Tuesday afternoon due to severe weather.
The bitter cold created some serious plumbing problems. It caused water pipes to burst Tuesday at Washington-Reagan National Airport, spilling into the baggage area. Pipes also burst at George Washington University Hospital, flooding 33 patients’ rooms, NBC Washington reported.
The deep freeze caused problems in the air, too. An American Airlines flight from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport to Baltimore Washington International made an emergency landing Tuesday afternoon after a water pipe in the lavatory burst mid-flight, soaking some of the flight's 140 passengers.
Even polar bears found it too cold
Chicago was so frigid Monday, that the city’s Lincoln Park Zoo kept its polar bear Anana indoors, NBC Chicago reported. A zoo spokeswoman said that while the below-zero weather might be similar to what polar bears experience in the wild, Anana doesn't have a thick layer of fat that bears typically get from eating seals and whale carcasses.
The sub-zero temperatures proved deadly for a peacock that spent 90 minutes outside after escaping a suburban Chicago zoo. It flew out of his heated pen and rescuers found the peacock's feet frozen to a nearby tree branch.
With -5 Fahrenheit and a wind speed of 35 mph making it feel like -34 Fahrenheit, it only takes about 10 minutes for exposed skin to get frostbitten, according to the National Weather Service. That can lead to amputations.
Hypothermia, when a person's total body temperature gets below 96 degrees Fahrenheit, can lead to unconsciousness or cardiac arrest. People were warned to watch out for signs of hypothermia, including uncontrollable shivering, weak pulse, disorientation, incoherence and drowsiness, and frostbite, including gray, white or yellow skin discoloration, numbness and waxy feeling skin.
Experts say a hat, face protection, mittens rather than gloves, layers of dry clothing are required to effectively guard against the intense cold.
The freezing conditions in Kentucky led an escaped prisoner to turn himself in on Monday. Robert Vick escaped from a minimum security facility in Lexington on Sunday, according to The Associated Press, but as the temperatures plunged to single digits the next day, he walked into a motel and asked the clerk to call the police because he wanted to get out of the cold. He was wearing only his prison-issued khaki pants, shorts and jacket when he escaped.
Polar Vortex really exists
Conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh made headlines Monday when he called the phenomenon a "hoax" and accused the media of making it up to promote the left's global warming agenda.
Real estate mogul Donald Trump also inserted himself into the polar vortex debate, tweeting, "Record snowfall & freezing temps throughout the country. Where is Global Warming when you need it?!"
The small town of Hell, Michigan, that is. Located 60 miles west of Detroit, the town, which received its moniker on Oct. 13, 1841,was hit hard by the vortex. The official temperature on Tuesday was -4 Fahrenheit, but to one long-time resident, it felt like -30 below. Even eggs froze in the nests of backyard chicken coops, clickondetroit.com reported.
Polar Vortex didn't stop people from having fun in the cold
As much as we want it gone, the polar vortex wasn’t all misery. Some people had fun in the freezing outdooors, including one teen who jumped on a frozen trampoline. Reporters, eager to demonstrate how cold it was, performed on-air experiments. One test showed how long it took for a wet T-shirt to freeze. On average, it took about 12 minutes.
But there were also those who engaged in a riskier experiment, tossing boiling water in the cold air and watching it freeze. The Los Angeles Times counted at least 50 people on social media who reported burning themselves or their friends after trying to turn scalding water into snow. There were also several reports of people going to the hospital to receive treatment for burns.
One person has died after a U.S. Navy helicopter crashed off the Virginia coast Wednesday, and another person remains missing, the Navy confirms.
The chopper crashed with five people aboard. The deceased crewman was one of four pulled from the water and airlifted to a local hospital.
The conditions of the three survivors are unknown.
Search and rescue efforts are continuing for the fifth person.
The helicopter -- a MH-53E Sea Dragon -- went down several miles off the Virginia Beach coast while on a training mission shortly before noon Wednesday. The Navy described the incident as "an emergency water landing." Those rescued were airlifted to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, according to a livestream on WAVY.com.
The identity of the deceased will not be released until 24 hours after the victim's family is notified.
The Coast Guard cutter Shearwater and two MH-60S helicopters from Helicopter Sea Combat Support Squadron 28 (HSC-28) are conducting search and rescue operations for the missing person, the Navy said.
The water in the area is 41 degrees, reports NBC Washington's Storm Team 4 Meteorologist Veronica Johnson. Hypothermia generally sets in after about 10 to 20 minutes in water that cold.
#BREAKING: #USNavy confirms one fatality from MH-53E crash off coast of #Norfolk, VA. Search continues for 1 missing.
The helicopter was based out of at Naval Station Norfolk Chambers Field and had been flying with another MH-53E on the training mission.
The Navy initially identified the aircraft as a CH-53E Super Stallion before issuing a correction. Sea Dragons are 99 feet long and weigh about 69,750 pounds. They are capable of speeds up to 172 mph.
Glastonbury police have arrested a Hartford man accused of stealing landscaping equipment from outside a local church in October.
Police said the items were stolen from outside St. Paul’s Church on Oct. 15 and Jose Martinez-Delgado, 48, of Nahum Drive in Hartford, was arrested on a warrant.
When police arrested Martinez-Delgado, they found him with counterfeit money, police said.
He was charged with fourth-degree, with bond set at $7,500, and first-degree forgery, with bond set at $10,000.
