Trash pg 1 4--25-24
- Details
- Category: Current Issue
Trash:
Nothing
changes
until May 1
By Linda Lemmon
Town Crier Editor
PUTNAM — Casella Waste Inc. said April 17 that there have been a “couple hiccups” in the changeover to the town’s new trash program, a frustrating one with the app moving trash pickup days to this week.
Casella’s Marc Morgan, Strategic Account Manager, Municipal Services, said the schedule in the app was not supposed to change until May 1.
“Nothing changes until May 1,” he said.
Understandably, with any new program, there are hiccups and glitches that need to be ironed out.
The company managing the Casella app knows about the “too early” problem and is fixing it. Morgan anticipated it will be fixed by the end of last week.
There was even confusion with the folks at the other end of the phone number for service: 860-423-4527. It will all get ironed out, Morgan said.
In the meantime, “nothing changes until May 1”.
A particular app “hiccup” is a Friday schedule.
Morgan said that currently the collection schedule in Putnam is Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.
In an effort to keep Fridays clear for schedule changes due to holidays/weather, the schedule will change, May 1, to Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. This way, if an additional day is needed for pickups, due to holidays or weather, it would be on Friday, not Saturday as it is now. Recycling pickup will be every other week.
The customers who ordinarily have trash picked up on Friday will see their pick-up day moved to Wednesday or Thursday. Check the app later.
“There are a couple hiccups,” Morgan said. “These are huge changes, big changes and we recognize that.” All will be corrected by May 1.
In the meantime, nothing changes until May 1.
Waste Support Systems distributed approximately 5,000 trash and recycle carts (they are carts, not bins) last week.
Morgan, asked what people should do if they didn’t get their cart, etc., suggested using the functional email button on the app to connect with Casella for answers. The service phone number is 860-423-4527.
Cart Details
Same ole. Same ole trash routine until May 1. Put your trash in a bag, put a sticker on the bag and put the bag in your usual trash can.
Nothing changes until May 1.
After May 1, Casella will be using automated side arm trash trucks to pick up Casella trash carts and recycle carts. Therefore there will be no pickups of trash or recycle for residents not in the new program, nor for trash in a bag with a sticker on it placed on the ground.
The stickers will no longer be used after June 30. Town officials said there is no “definitive date yet”, but they anticipate the town will probably stop selling stickers to the vendors June 1.
Cart Placement:
Carts should be placed on a flat surface at least 3 feet apart, with the front facing the road. For the arm to swing the trash can to the top of the truck there should be 10 to 12 feet of clearance from tree branches, etc. Morgan said many people put the trash cart on one side of the driveway and the recycle cart on the other side of the driveway. The carts should be clear of snow, landscaping, mail boxes and utility poles.
The carts delivered this week have a serial number printed on them and an RFID tag. The trash truck driver will have a tablet that shows his stops. If the wrong cart or too many carts are out — not in line with what the tablet says — the driver will notify dispatch and a cart crew will be sent out.
What About the Trash Workers?
Casella is switching to automated side arm trucks for trash pickup. There will be no more workers hanging off the back of the trucks. Asked what will happen to all those workers, Morgan said “No one is losing their job. They will shift to other duties or other locations.”
What About Bulky Waste?
Bulky waste had been handled with stickers for decades. You put a sticker on a bed frame and put it out for collection, said Highway Superintendent Travis Sirrine.
Beginning May 1 bulky waste will no longer be picked up curbside. The town’s Bulky Waste Collection will be May 18 at the Putnam Armory; and Aug. 17and Oct. 26 at the Putnam Middle School. No charge — you just need to show residency. Sirrine had said in January the town is looking into a transfer station that would take all waste except household garbage, but that’s sometime, perhaps, in the future. He said he has advised folks with some types of waste (he gave the example of chunks of drywall) to call the towns of Brooklyn, Killingly or Woodstock to inquire about using their transfer station. Ask if a temporary permit is possible.
Morgan’s advice to residents is “just take a deep breath. It’s all centered on May 1.” Nothing changes until May 1.
.
International pg 1 4-25-24
- Details
- Category: Current Issue
captions, page 6, clockwise from top left:
Leona Stark, 4, has a unicorn painted on her face by Simone Germaine. More photos on our FB page Wed.: Putnam Town Crier & Northeast Ledger.
Reptile Shows of New England brought some "guests".
Arabella Hevy of Killingly got a duck at the Pluck-a-Duck booth.
By Linda Lemmon
Town Crier Editor
PUTNAM — International Day April 20 was a great success, according to organizers.
The event, offered by the Putnam Business Association and the Town of Putnam, is designed to encourage visitors and residents to visit Putnam businesses.
Anne Miller of TEEG, co-chair of the event, said the goal is to push people into businesses. A “Passport” system was implemented: visitors picked up a “passport” that was then stamped by each business they visited. Prizes were offered. Miller said when she was gathering passports at the end of the day she asked people where they had visited and many said they had visited a new place.
Miller serves with co-chair Melissa Cozza of The Broken Crust. They are in their second year as chairs.
Willie Bousquet, director of the town’s Park and Recreation Department, said he thought the event went well this year.
Reptile Shows of New England was a big draw, Miller said.
Also popular was the half-hour bus tour of the downtown area conducted by the Aspinock Historical Society.
“We wanted to highlight businesses and get people in to see what we have here,” Miller said. “It was pretty busy.”
.
the world pg 1 4-25-24
- Details
- Category: Current Issue
caption:
Firefighters at the debriefing after the water supply training hosted by the East Putnam Fire Department April 21. More photos on page 6 and expanded photo array on Wed. night on our FB page: Putnam Town Crier & Northeast Ledger. Linda Lemmon photo.
By Linda Lemmon
Town Crier Editor
PUTNAM — One of the many challenges for fire departments in small/rural towns is water: Where are our water sources and how do we get it to the fire expeditiously.
April 21 the East Putnam Fire Department hosted a training session for shuttling water. The East Thompson Volunteer Fire Department set up at the bridge on Five Mile River Road, transferring water into tanker trucks that were rotating through. The tanker trucks went to the “fire” on the property across from Ross Recycling and transferred the water into “dump tanks.” From there water was pumped to the Putnam Fire Department ladder truck which was pumping water.
East Putnam Fire Department Chief Abe Walker said the planning for this training started last year after the Elmwood Hill Road fire in East Putnam last December. Finding water and getting it to the fire site proved challenging. When a fire department is called out, once it’s ascertained there is a structure fire, the water supply task force is activated with mutual aid departments.
Walker said that 1,000 gallons per minutes was pumped onto the “fire” for two hours.
He added that the next water supply training would be for "what would happen if the fire was on Liberty Highway." That would involve more trucks as the water would have to be shuttled from the hydrant at the DOT garage on Rt. 12, up Hurry Hill and then to the fire. “We’d probably need eight trucks for that,” he said.
Atwood Hose Fire Company Chief Robert Duval said each participating company made three trips. The supply was only lost for five minutes, due to a navigation error.
He made several suggestions to the firefighters gathered around for the debriefing including buying a soccer ball to find the vortex in the dump tank, putting a tarp to protect the dump tank, to protect against rips and creating signs with numbers on them so the tanks can be numbered, to make the filling process quick and smooth. He also recommended “know where your exhaust is.” “You saw how labor intensive this was,” he said. “I’d recommend there is one person assigned to guide tankers.”
Departments taking part included: East Putnam Fire Department, Putnam Fire Department, Thompson Fire Engine Company, Attawaugan Fire Department, East Thompson Volunteer Fire Department, Central Village Fire Company.
“This is the world of rural water supply,” he added.
because pg 1 4-25-24
- Details
- Category: Current Issue
Recently, I had the opportunity to take the Behind the Scenes, Keys to the Kingdom Tour at the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World. As someone who has been enjoying the magic of Disney for many decades, this was a tour that was on my bucket list. The tour was wonderful. We accessed places and spaces that allowed for seamless expressions of Disney magic for visiting guests of all ages. However, because we all had to raise our hands and promise to never share all the magical-making secrets, I am going to honor my pledge. But what I am feeling compelled to share about my experience, is how the tour managed to make ME feel the magic of Disney World…even more.
My favorite part of the tour was hearing about the history of how, and more importantly, why, Mickey Mouse and Disney World were conceived. Of course, mostly everyone knows about the brothers, Walt and Roy Disney. Walt was the visionary and Roy made it happen. But perhaps not everyone knows that, for Roy, the loss of his brother Walt, only further inspired him to ensure that the magic of the Magic Kingdom be created in a way that would inspire happiness and joy for generations to come. Or at least that is how I interpreted the information our tour guide presented. And Roy did just that, passing away himself only a few short months after the opening of the Walt Disney World Park in October of 1971.
I was a little baby when the Magic Kingdom opened its magical gate and began welcoming guests. I didn’t experience the magic of Disney until I was an adolescent and a little too old to believe that Tinker Bell could really fly. But last week, as I stood, shoulder to shoulder amongst a large crowd on Main Street USA, watching the fireworks show over Cinderella’s Castle, I knew that a highly trained and competent performer playing Tinker Bell, would. Earlier in the day, I had learned all about this stunt during my tour. Despite knowing that it was going to happen, I found myself feeling excited as the tension built. And when Tinker Bell leapt across the sky, I will admit that my eyes teared up as I thought about how two brothers spent their lifetimes, literally, to create this moment for the joy of others. And then, the young boy just behind me began to yell excitedly to his parents “Mom! Dad! Look! Tinker Bell is flying! She’s flying! She’s really flying!” My watery eyes released the tears as I thought to myself “She really is.”
MAGIC! MAGIC!
Kathy Naumann, possessor of NATURALLY curly hair and the understanding that you can’t control everything!
.