Coastline residents brace for storm

FAIRFIELD, Conn. (WTNH) -- This blizzard isn't going to make things any easier for people living along the shoreline who are still trying to recover from Superstorm Sandy.

People along the shoreline in farifield county don't only have snow to worry about tomorrow but also flooding.

The idea of more flooding along the CT shoreline is an unwanted one for residents and one that officials are all too prepared for.

"They'll probably go under it's just how severe they go under, time will tell," said Scott Bartlett, Superintendet of Fairfield.

Fairfield's top emergency management leaders met today to prepare for tomorrow's big storm.

"Prepare like you would for the hurricane. We're getting good at this unfortunately. Prepare like you have for past storms," said Chief Gary MacNamara, Fairfield Police Dept.

They expect areas hit hard by Sandy to see flooding at high tide Friday night.

"High tide is 9:46 p.m. Friday evening and we expect a high tide around 7 feet with a 3 to 5 foot surge," said Bartlett.

Flooding isn't the only concern for coastline Residents. They also face potential power outages, something officials are worried about because it's so cold outside.

"We've got a number of issues going on here. One is the potential for flood because the higher tides that are coming in but also with the storm coming down, hopefully we don't have too many trees fall. I think we've lost lose in recent storms but we're still worried about branches coming down, power outages and the difficulty in winter is that when we get the power outages, we also have a heat problem," said Mike Tetreau, Fairfield First Selectman.

"We may if there is significant power outages open up our shelter," said MacNamara.

If needed, Fairfield Ludlowe High School will serve as the shelter.

They say they are in touch with UI officials to coordinate the power outage response.

"We'll be on the phone with them, getting emails from them," said Tetreau.

The good news is the wind will be blowing in a parallel direction along the shoreline so it is not going to be pushing the waves onto the shore like it did during Superstorm Sandy.