Wind Storm Topples Trees, Police Shut Down Roads

Police and Department of Public Works employees were busy clearing the roads Monday morning through early afternoon after gusts of winds downed large tree limbs and knocked down power lines.

To keep drivers safe, officers closed down Route 44 until workers with chainsaws could cut the limbs down. A handful of nearby roads were also closed.

According to Sgt. Anthony Araujo, traffic was up and running by mid-afternoon leaving the public safety complex busy for the earlier part of the day. There were no injuries due to the storm.

But one local business was greatly affected by the sudden wind storm.

Durand Insurance, located on 690 Taunton Ave., was without electricity for about half of the work day after a huge tree was downed close to the road.

"The wind just came up," said Laura Feley, an employee of Durand Insurance.

According to Feley, the employees were without power from approximatly 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. They kept themselves busy by talking and waiting out the blackout. All was back to normal by mid-afternoon.