While the Rindge Fire Department was kept busy over the weekend responding to downed trees and wires due to the first major winter storm of the season, emergency cones belonging to the town that had been set up to warn drivers of upcoming hazards were stolen from their spots on the roadway.
Life Safety Director and Fire Chief Rick Donovan said four cones vanished from South Woodbound Road near the Woodbound Road intersection, and on Hunt Hill Road near Middle Winchendon Road. Another two or three cones were set up to replace those that disappeared from Woodbound Road, but by Sunday evening, those were also gone.
Donovan said this is not a new issue for the department.
“We always have it, anytime trees and wires are down. We found it in the [2008] ice storm, and during big summer storms. We put out cones or barriers to post that there’s a hazard situation, and we have to have someone on ‘barrier patrol’ to check them regularly. People run them over, push them out of the way, throw them in the woods or take them.”
Some are tossed to the side of the road, and are easily recovered, Donovan said, and others simply disappear.
Donovan said it’s unusual for a big storm event to pass without barriers or cones being damaged or moved, but more than the cost of repairing or replacing them, he said it’s a huge safety concern.
“We put them out for safety reasons, and if you take the cones, run them over or vandalize them, the next person through could have a dangerous moment. When you remove it, especially in a snow condition, the next person might not see the hazard we’re trying to warn them of. We could have a problem. It’s destructive as well as disrespectful to remove them.”
It also wastes department time, Donovan said, usually during a period when they may be facing a high number of calls. Once, Donovan recalled, the department had to return to a single road three times to replace barriers because residents kept notifying them of the hazard. During a storm, when the department may be responding to multiple reports of trees or wires down, or other hazards, they should not have to return to a site they’ve already dealt with, Donovan said.
“It becomes a nuisance because we have to keep going back to the same place, and creates an unnecessary 911 call with people trying to notify us,” Donovan said.
The cones are heavy-duty cones compliant with the state’s Traffic Safety Administration and Department of Transportation, and are 28 inches tall with reflective stripes. The cones are all marked with “RINDGE.”
The department put out a request for the cones’ return on the department Facebook page, or for information on where they are located if they were discarded. Cones can be dropped off at the Rindge Fire Department. People can call the department if they see one of the cones, and the department will retrieve it.
Ashley Saari can be reached at 603-924-7172, Ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.