Southold Town will lend its engineers to Shelter Island to do part-time work on its stormwater runoff program, officials from both towns agreed Tuesday.

Shelter Island’s part-time engineer decided to move on and town attorney Laury Dowd, who has been handling Municipal Separate Stormwater Sewer Systems, or MS4, duties, will retire in December, said Supervisor Jim Dougherty.

Under the proposed agreement, Southold engineers Michael Collins and Jamie Richter will spend no more than 200 hours annually working on Shelter Island’s program.

“I don’t think Shelter Island at this point yet needs a full-time engineer,” Mr. Dougherty said. “I think we can satisfy our part-time needs.”

Mr. Collins said Shelter Island’s stormwater designation was made in error by the Department of Environmental Conservation and, depending on the what the town decides, he and Mr. Richter could help sort out the mistakes that led to it. Otherwise, he said, they’d help with baseline compliance as part of the stormwater program.

“It’s not going to be very much different from what we do here [in Southold] and certainly less extensive,” Mr. Collins said. “It would really be a great benefit because if we can help their program correct these mistakes, that’s going to reverberate here.”

Ms. Dowd noted that Gov. Andrew Cuomo has already been calling for shared services between municipalities.

Southold Supervisor Scott Russell said the plan is a good idea and that the towns will work out the details of the new agreement. He recently attended several meetings on the possibility of shared services involving officials from different municipalities.

“Quite honestly, a lot of us in the room were already doing a lot of what [the state] wanted so it was difficult to find new things,” Mr. Russell said.

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT

The Southold Town Board held a public hearing during its evening session on how to spend an estimated $50,000 in Community Development Block Grant funds. Representatives from Community Action Southold Town, The Butterfly Effect Project and Maureen’s Haven all asked for financial support. The Butterfly Effect Project, based in Riverhead, works with young girls and hopes to bring a pilot project to Southold Town.

Supervisor Scott Russell said that, just a few years ago, the town received $400,000 in block grant funds.

The board also held public hearings on an amendment to the town code for a tax exemption for Cold War veterans. The board voted unanimously in favor of that resolution but tabled action on two other public hearings. One hearing related to a proposal to require permits for boat haulers that use local ramps; the other concerned a proposal to tighten policies related to contractors working in wetland and shoreline areas.

kzegers@timesreview.com

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A Southold man was arrested last Wednesday on a drunken-driving charge on Ackerly Pond Lane, according to a Southold Town police press release.

Jonas Graseck, 43, was pulled over around 5 p.m. and charged with driving while intoxicated, police said.

• Matthew Nemschick, 51, of Mattituck was arrested last Thursday around 5:40 p.m. for DWI on Route 48 and Westphalia Road in Mattituck, police said.

• A Greenport woman reported that an unknown person punctured the side wall of her vehicle’s front passenger side tire last Monday around 3 p.m., police said.

• A Greenport man reported $35,000 stolen from his car on Friday around 9 a.m., police said.

• A Riverhead man reported an iPhone 7 stolen from his car while it was parked in Peconic Friday around 5 p.m., police said.

• A Southold woman reported finding a deer carcass in the woods on the west side of the Southold train station Saturday, police said. Police responded around noon and saw the carcass, along with its internal organs in plastic garbage bag, the report states. Town highway personnel were advised to pick up the deer on Monday, officials said.

Those who are named in police reports have not been convicted of any crime or violation. The charges against them may later be reduced or withdrawn, or they may be found innocent.

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A Mattituck couple has been selected to have their septic system replaced with an advanced wastewater treatment system through Suffolk County’s Reclaim Our Water initiative.

Construction at Jack and Maureen Hurley’s waterfront home started Wednesday morning where their cesspool was replaced with a nitrogen reducing septic system called “Hydro-Action.”

“With our proximity to the water, we wanted to do everything we could to help,” Mr. Hurley said. “Luckily, we got the grant.”

The county is offering grants of up to $11,000 to help pay the cost of new systems, which reduces the amount of nitrogen that goes into groundwater. Voters last year overwhelmingly approved an amendment to the Community Preservation Fund, which allows up to 20 percent of the funding to be spent on water quality improvement programs such as this.

Tom and Jennifer Foster — Cutchogue residents and owners of Ecology Supply Company in Riverhead — installed a Hydro-Action system at the Hurley’s home Wednesday. Those systems, which are designed to reduce nitrogen from entering waterways and protect brown tide and fish kills, became popular after county launched its grant program, Mr. Foster said.

Protecting waters from nitrogen loading is something Mr. Hurley believes is a very important issue.

“I have a feeling it won’t be long be long before this type of system is required,” he said.

In order to qualify for a grant, an applicant must live in a single-family house year round; vacation or rental homes are not eligible. Visit www.reclaimourwater.info for more information.

rsiford@timesreview.com

Photo credit: Rachel Siford

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A unicorn walks in Greenport’s March of the Goblins and Hounds Halloween parade. (Credit: Madison Fender)

Kids in costumes an dressed-up dogs made their way through Greenport Village on Saturday for the annual March of the Goblins and Hounds parade.

The march began at Floyd Memorial Library and ended at Mitchell Park. The event was sponsored by the Greenport BID in partnership with Floyd Memorial Library, Greenport Village and the Greenport Parent Teacher Organization.

See the photos from contributing northforker photographer Madison Fender on northforker.com.

TOP PHOTO: A unicorn walks in Greenport’s March of the Goblins and Hounds Halloween parade. (Credit: Madison Fender)

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A federal task force has been created to tackle the opioid crisis in New York State, home to some of the nation’s highest overdose rates, and it will be stationed on Long Island, according to a press release issued Friday by U.S. Senator Charles Schumer’s office.

Mr. Schumer said he helped secure $12.5 million in last year’s budget to create the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s “Heroin Enforcement Teams” to investigate heroin and fentanyl trafficking. One of six teams will be sent to Long Island. The others will be stationed at Charleston, Cleveland, Cincinnati, New Bedford and Raleigh, the release states.

“New York is getting an A-Team to help tackle the heroin and fentanyl epidemic and it couldn’t come soon enough,” Mr. Schumer said in the release. “I helped deliver the funds the DEA needed to create these teams because we are in urgent need of help and a special heroin enforcement team will lend a major hand in the fight to end the opioid scourge. I’m pleased that the feds have heeded the call. As the overdoses related to illicit fentanyl and other synthetic opioids increase, the new enforcement team will help the NYPD, Long Island and other local police departments across the state contain and beat back the dangerous tide. We must not let off the gas pedal in the fight against opioid dealers, abuse and death in New York.”

In the ongoing battle against opioid addiction, fentanyl — a prescription drug that’s found its way onto the streets in an illegally manufactured form — has surpassed heroin as Suffolk County’s deadliest drug. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes fentanyl is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine.

While it is possible to purchase pure fentanyl, the drug is most often mixed with heroin before it’s sold, creating a dangerous combination. In many cases, drug users are unaware they are buying the mix. They might think they’re ingesting the same amount of heroin they typically use to get high, but because of the added fentanyl, the dose they normally tolerate can become lethal.

Mr. Schumer’s press release notes statistics from the New York State Department of Health showing that Suffolk County reported 22 overdoses over a two day span in June, including one that was fatal. In 2015, 213 opioid overdose deaths occurred in the county, including 137 related to heroin, the release states.

In addition, New York City has been identified as a “major distribution hub for heroin mills that use JFK International Airport as an entry point to more easily access the greater Northeast region” and federal agents recently “seized enough fentanyl to kill 32 million people — the largest such bust in New York City history,” the release states.

The new federal team assigned to New York will be “comprised of two new DEA agents plus two officers from an existing task force,” the release states.

The Suffolk County Police Department is holding a press conference Saturday afternoon to reveal details on a recent drug bust where police seized “a significant quantity of deadly fentanyl,” according to the police press release.

jnuzzo@timesreview.com

Photo: Fentanyl is often mixed into bags of heroin, creating a lethal combination that, according to officials, users are not always aware of. (Credit: Cliff Owen / Associated Press)

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Seconds after the final whistle of Pierson/Bridgehampton’s 1-0 victory over Southold in the Suffolk County Class C boys soccer final Saturday, an emotional Ryan Herrmann fell to a crouch and held his head in his hands in disbelief.

The First Settlers senior co-captain could not believe his team had lost in what was his last high school game at Islip High School. Pierson midfielder Grady Burton came over to console his foe, but little good it did.

It was a disappointing way to end a career and a season in which Herrmann tallied a team-high 19 goals with dreams of going far in the state tournament.

“It stinks, especially it’s the last year,” Herrmann said later. “There’s nothing more to gain from it. We’re such a good team. We could have done it, but not everyone was in it.”

The First Settlers (14-3-1) rebounded from a rather sub-par 2016 season to become one of the dominant League VIII teams. Their No. 1 nemesis was the Whalers (15-1-1), against whom they could not beat them season. They went 0-2-1 against Pierson.

“It was definitely tough,” co-captain and senior midfielder Joe Berry said of the loss. “I feel like we outplayed them. They got one in the back of the net and we didn’t.”

Southold coach Andrew Sadowski felt the Whalers played with more desire. “I think the bottom line … Pierson wanted to win,” he said. “They attacked the ball more. As a team they attacked. We didn’t attack as a team.”

Except for a handful of players, Sadowski thought his team did not give full effort when it was needed, especially during crunch time.

“We didn’t have a killer instinct from the people where the ball went to,” he said. “I certainly can’t fault the two captains for not putting the effort there because it was there 100 percent. They can’t do it themselves. This is a team game.”

Herrmann agreed. Asked what was missing, he said: “Definitely, our instincts, just go for the ball. Not a lot of people went for it. There’s only a few like me. Joey [Silvestro], Joe Berry, Joe Hayes.”

Pierson took advantage of a Southold mistake to score the lone goal with 23 minutes and 26 seconds remaining in the opening half. Luis Padilla sent in a free kick that midfielder Jorge Alvarado headed home from close range to the right near post past goalkeeper Cole Brigham.

“I was happy with the [way the] team was playing, up until you duck and the ball goes to the Pierson kid’s head and he nodded it in,” Sadowski said about one of his defenders.

Herrmann had Southold’s best opportunity with 26:37 left in the second half as diving goalkeeper Will Martin robbed him of a header goal off a Silvestro feed. “He just nicked it,” Herrmann said.

Berry was certain the Settlers had equalized.

“I definitely thought that one was going in,” he said. “Even though it didn’t, it kind of picked up the intensity.”

Asked what he took from the game, Sadowski replied: “What do I take? It’s not what I take, it’s what the players have to take. They’re the ones who are on the field. If they don’t listen to the instructions of the coaching staff and they play the way they want to, that’s where the big part of the big issue is. Unfortunately, we’re a small school. We have a certain number of players to choose from. But some of them have to know they didn’t put their best effort out there. Senior, junior, sophomore, they have to know that. And I’m not going to be the one to tell them all the time.”

mlewis@timesreview.com

Photo caption: Southold senior Ryan Herrmann is consoled by Pierson/Bridgehampton’s Grady Burton following the First Settlers’ 1-0 loss in the Suffolk County Class C final. (Credit: Robert O’Rourk)

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Mattituck senior midfielder-striker Axel Rodriguez has been on both sides of 6-0 results in the boys soccer postseason during his high school career. This one definitely left a sour taste in his mouth.

As a freshman in 2014, Rodriguez scored a goal in a 6-0 triumph in the New York State Class B semifinals. A day later, the Tuckers secured their third state championship.

On Saturday, Rodriguez and the Tuckers suffered a 6-0 defeat to a juggernaut Center Moriches team in the Suffolk County Class B championship game at Islip High School.

“It was a different feeling, one was one of the greatest feelings,” Rodriguez said of the 2014 win. “We [eliminated] this team out of the playoffs and the next day we went there and won the states. Now, it’s different. We lost six-nil and we are out of the playoffs. There is no other practice, there is no other game tomorrow. Two different feelings.

“It’s hard to lose six-nil in the championship. It shouldn’t be that way. They deserved it. They wanted it more than we do.”

The Red Devils (17-0) have run roughshod over all comers this season, including Class A and AA teams. They won the League VII crown with ease, outscoring their foes, 80-9. They moved the ball quickly, smoothly, smartly and with efficiency.

“You’ve got to tip your hat to a good team when you play one and they’re excellent,” Mattituck coach Will Hayes said. “The shoe has been on the other foot before. It will be on the other foot again. But right now it’s their moment. They have a tremendous team, quality players. They’re going to go far. They’re going to go far as they keep scoring goals.”

With the incomparable Ben Hamilton (county-best 36 goals, plus 17 assists) leading the way with two goals, Center Moriches rolled to a 5-0 halftime advantage.

“Center’s a very, very, very skilled team. Honestly, one of the best I’ve played so far in my high school career,” junior goalkeeper James Jacobs said.

Added senior defender Justin Lake: “They have a quality team. We tried our best at practice, bouncing around with different formations and different looks. They’re a quality team. There’s really nothing we could have done. We did our best. That’s really all you can put out there.”

Mattituck kept Center Moriches off the scoreboard for the opening 12 minutes before Hamilton put in a rebound of an Eric Amaya shot that Jacobs saved with 27:48 remaining in the half.

“I think [we] give up too easily,” Rodriguez said. “We didn’t know how to come back from the first goal. I think we just gave up.”

The Tuckers never recovered. Liam Pulsipher tallied from close range with 24:04 left in the first half to double the lead before Michael Luongo made it 3-0, connecting from the right side of the penalty area.

“Three-nil, game over,” Hayes said. “For the first 20 minutes, we actually played very well. I was very happy with the shape, the organization. It was exactly how we trained. It was exactly what we wanted to do and exactly how I feel a team would be successful against Center Moriches. Our players started to fatigue, chasing them and staying organized against that kind of ball movement.”

Amaya and Hamilton added first-half goals and John DeBatto closed out the scoring in the second half.

While the result was far from what the Tuckers (6-12) had wanted, just reaching the final was a major accomplishment in a season in which they finished below .500 for the first time in 81 years. They won four of their last five matches, including a 1-0 semifinal victory over Babylon.

“Being a three-year starter, this has been a goal of mine to get to the county final,” Lake said. “Getting this far was something we strived to. The beginning of the season was rough. We worked out the kinks, [went through] formations and found something that worked for us. Peaking right before playoffs definitely was the right thing to get us where we are now.”

Jacobs promised a new and improved version of the Tuckers will return in 2018.

“Next year, we’re going to come back,” he said. “We’re definitely going to show them who Mattituck really is.”

mlewis@timesreview.com

Photo caption: Mattituck’s Jason Scalia heading a shot toward the Center Moriches goal. (Credit: Robert O’Rourk)

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We spent a minute with a group of local fisherman along Truman’s Beach in East Marion Thursday afternoon. 

The Long Island Sound beach at the eastern end of the causeway is a popular spot for anglers to visit this time of year.

On a stormy Thursday afternoon, the shoreline was bustling with fishermen. Enjoy!

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Her name was Meghan. She had seen an article about how I was traveling the states in search of stories of kindness and reached out to me via Facebook to offer me a place to stay. She told me she had a home in Cape Elizabeth, Maine. I had just left the Portland area but was due to return a few days later to meet an amazing woman for a story so I asked if I could spend Thursday night with her. She replied, “Of course,” but mentioned she actually had to work that night. I began to wonder if I should just stay with my original Portland hosts to not be a bother to her, but she insisted I come stay and that maybe I’d be able to get some work done since no one would be around.

She had a point. I had just finished my wedding season when I packed up my car on Oct. 29, 2016, and there were very few opportunities to sit down and edit the thousands of photos waiting for me on my hard drive. Every day was spent driving, meeting new hosts, meeting new people with their stories. If a bride reached out for a certain photo, I was Googling the closest Starbucks and pulling over just to upload and edit that certain picture and send it over to her. It wasn’t the best plan, but it was the best I could do living on the road and being in and out of strangers’ homes.

• See also: Orient woman embarking on 50-state journey

I arrived at her house just as it was getting dark. A small lamp lit up the big blue door. I knocked. “Come in,” I heard a voice say and pushed open the door to the smell of a home-cooked meal. Meghan was making eggplant rollatini and the wood stove was burning. Her little dog ran over to me to greet me, and I noticed Eva Cassidy’s voice was gracing the house. My mom loved Eva Cassidy and I remember her often playing her as she cooked my family dinner. I had taken two steps into a house I’d never been to, into a woman’s life I’d never known, and instantly felt home. Safe. Comfortable. And like I could start crying … which would be awkward since she didn’t know me yet, so luckily I was able to pull myself together. The next morning she made me fresh scrambled eggs she got from the henhouse and raspberry scones made from the raspberries in her garden. I drove away that morning and felt like I was driving out of a fairy tale. I couldn’t be more hopeful for the next few connections I’d make, for the stories I was about to get, for the experiences I was about to have.

The day I took off for this journey, in a way, was very similar to what this entire year has been like for me. The morning of Oct. 29 began with my best friend, Erin, taking me out to a lovely breakfast where I was able to consume only about two bites of toast due to my anxiety at beginning this endeavor. One of those bites somehow caused me to break my tooth. A phone call to my sisters later, I was rushing to their dentist, where I was lucky to get it fixed enough to be able to still leave that same day. Once the car was completed packed, my father jumped in the front seat to join me for the 10-minute drive to the ferry. We stopped at my mom’s grave on the way and he asked me what I’d be doing if she were still here … I told him, “Well, not THIS crazy thing.” A few minutes later I waved goodbye to family and close friends and took off. And while I’ve been back and forth a bit for work, my heart (and my car) have been on the road and in this project for a year now.

And maybe it is the craziest thing I’ve ever done. But it’s also been the most extraordinary. I’ve heard hundreds of beautiful stories. So many stories of hope.

When I drove my mother’s old Subaru onto the Cross Sound Ferry a year ago I had no idea what this journey would really entail. I just knew I had to do it. I wanted to go out and show people how much good was out there. I wanted to prove that if you believed in that message, you’d see it more clearly. And I think we all need that opportunity to see more good out there right now, and that is what I’m hoping to provide with this mission. I created this project for many reasons, but one was to help myself heal. When my mother died, my heart broke into a million pieces. And over the past year, with the assistance of so many strangers and friends and family, I’ve started to put myself back together again. By changing my focus and constantly looking for the good, I’ve been overwhelmed by kindness and comfort from others. I can only hope by sharing my stories of this journey, a journey that has led me into 79 homes across 23 states so far, that I can help heal others too. That I can shine light on all of these incredible people and all of the kindness that gets masked by the bad we are shown on our screens.

A lot of people see a country full of broken hearts right now; I see it too. But I also see a country full of hope.

It’s amazing when you do change your focus, when you perform little acts of kindness, you start to see things so differently. You might have a broken heart, but so might the person next to you. Be the light for them. Show them they aren’t alone. Buy them a cup of coffee. That’s what I’ve learned on my journey. We need to trust each other more. Support each other. Love each other. Make each other realize we are in this together. That we matter.

So a year ago when I stood at my mother’s grave, tightly grasping my father’s hand, and told him this was crazy … maybe I was wrong. Because I think this may end up being the most important thing I will ever do.

Mary Latham is a Long Island-based wedding photographer who grew up in Orient. She has lived in Manhattan, St. John, USVI, and Florence, Italy, and now resides in her mother’s old blue Subaru. Since Oct. 29, 2016, she has been on a road trip across the U.S. For more information visit www.moregoodtoday.com.

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Southold High School seniors Joe Berry and Bradley Mellas hopped aboard a duck boat early Tuesday morning and sailed into the Peconic River, taking the boat’s maiden voyage.

The trip was special for Joe, who spent a year building the boat during free periods and after school meetings of the high school’s technology club.

“It felt good,” Joe said. “It went faster than I thought it would.”

Joe’s unnamed boat, which he’ll use to hunt duck and geese this season, was joined by another duck boat, named Gale, built by technology education teacher Matt Pfister and other students in the technology club.

The boats, which students worked on during study halls and after school — sometimes staying until as late as 6 or 7 p.m. — were made possible by private money, donations and fundraisers, Mr. Pfister said.

Before being launched onto the river, both boats were christened with the traditional breaking of a bottle of champagne and foliage was placed aboard them for safe passage. But finishing touches still need to be added before they’ll be ready for hunting season. For example, grass will be added to the flaps so the boats blend into the shoreline.

“They will go in small little waterways like this, up in the crevices, and they’ll sit beachside while people hunt out of them,” Mr. Pfister explained.

Mr. Pfister and Jaime Engels in one of the two duck boats launched Tuesday morning. (Credit: Nicole Smith)

In addition to using his boat recreationally, Joe will show off his hard work next month at the 37th annual duck boat show and waterfowl festival in Babylon.

Each of the boats began as pieces of plywood, Mr. Pfister said. The students worked with fiberglass and resin to build the boat and fit it for the needs of the waterways and those using it to hunt. The six students in the club created designs, worked from plans and lofted the lines of the boats as well.

“The most difficult part was the sanding and the bondo [filling cracks in the wood],” Joe said, adding that his favorite part was working with the fiberglass.

Mr. Pfister thanked the community, students, parents, the Board of Education and school administrators, many of whom were in attendance at Tuesday morning’s launch, for making the long-term project possible for him and the technology club members.

“A lot of people pass this tradition on in a way,” Mr. Pfister said, noting that Southold was founded in 1640 as a fishing and farming community. “We want to show the kids how it’s done and how to hunt.”

Photo caption: Southold technology education teacher Matt Pfister (left) and Southold senior Joe Berry with the duck boats they spent a year building with the school’s technology club. (Credit: Nicole Smith)

nsmith@timesreview.com

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Some of the region’s top energy and elected officials came together in Riverhead last Thursday to showcase a signature achievement on Long Island: the installation of a geothermal heating system that connects 10 residences in Glenwood Village.

Constructed by Miller Environmental Group Inc. of Calverton, the system taps into the earth’s natural warmth and, via underground tubes, connects residences in the village in a way whereby each can be heated in winter and cooled in summer with nearly no environmental consequences.

“This is the most efficient heating and cooling there is,” said Mark Miller, the firm’s president and CEO. “It is far cleaner and with far less of a carbon footprint.”

Attending a ribbon-cutting at Glenwood Village were officials from National Grid, PSEG Long Island and NYSERDA, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority.

Before the event, Ken Daly, president of National Grid, Long Island’s natural gas delivery company, said the geothermal system at Glenwood Village demonstrates “the art of the possible with the earth’s energy.”

He said geothermal was “cleaner and greener,” typically offering homeowners who install such a systems savings of 30 percent a year on cooling costs and 70 percent on heating costs. He hailed it as part of New York’s clean energy initiative, which is part of a concerted effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions statewide.

Mr. Daly explained that the Miller Environmental Group bored holes 250 feet deep into the earth and inserted a loop in each bore. The loops are made of high-density polyethelene, the same as pipe that is used to transport natural gas.

The loops are connected to each of the 10 participating residences. In summer, the energy brought up from underground is used to cool residences and in winter to heat residences. No oil or natural gas is burned, and carbon emissions are all but eliminated.

“If you look into the future, wind, solar and geothermal are the future,” Mr. Daly said.

Speaking at a podium, Mr. Daly described the earth as “the ultimate battery.” He said geothermal comprises three things: a heat pump, the underground tubes and the earth itself. He said converting one house to geothermal was the equivalent of taking 20 cars off the road.

Alicia Barton, president and CEO of NYSERDA, said the project in the village “is the start of something great. We are making moves across the board on clean energy.” She said commercial buildings contribute one-third of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions.

“That is one area where we need to make real progress,” she said.

Michael Voltz — the aptly named director of energy efficiency and renewables at PSEG Long Island — said geothermal was 400 percent more efficient than other energy systems. He said some 2,000 geothermal units have been installed on Long Island in the past 15 years, most in single-family homes.

In his comments at the podium, Suffolk County Executive Steven Bellone hailed the system as “incredibly important” for the county. Noting that superstorm Sandy hit five years ago this month, he emphasized that the reality of climate change was already upon us, with a higher frequency of “very tough storms.”

He said New York State was “racing to the future” with clean energy.

swick@timesreview.com

File photo credit: Barbaraellen Koch

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Updated (2 p.m.): The storm that brought heavy wind across the Northeast resulted in multiple power outages across the North Fork, resulting in more than 2,000 customers without power as of just past 2:30 p.m. Monday, according to PSEG Long Island.

The majority of outages are centered in Southold with 547, Orient with 494 and Cutchogue with 465.

A total of just under 23,000 customers on Long Island were without power as of Monday afternoon, according to PSEG. There were 210 customers without power in Mattituck and additional outages were reported in Peconic, Laurel, East Marion and New Suffolk. The estimated restoration times for all the outages were listed as throughout Tuesday, from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Numerous downed poles and wires on Sound Avenue forced Riverhead Town police to close the road between Manor Lane and Herricks Lane. PSEG is expected to respond at some point today with a full crew to fix the problem, police said.

Westbound traffic was backed up from the Manor Lane to Laurel Lane on Main Road shortly after 9 a.m.

Highway crews in Southold Town were clearing debris off Main Road. Traffic was diverted down Wickham Avenue in Mattituck where a large tree was uprooted and fell in front of Kardwell International. Main Road was also closed in Cutchogue with traffic diverted onto Depot Lane.

Southold Town Highway Department Superintendent Vincent Orlando said crews have been responding to tree issues since 10 p.m. Sunday. As of noon Monday, crews have responded to about 30 trees. He said there were no flooding issues.

A tree uprooted on Main Road in Mattituck Monday morning. (Credit: Kelly Zegers)

A wind advisory ended at 2 p.m., according to the National Weather Service. A coastal flood advisory ended at 9 a.m. A high wind warning had been in effect overnight, but was since canceled. Winds of 15 to 25 mph were expected in the morning with gusts up to 50 mph, the NWS said.

Riverhead police also reported that at 4:20 a.m., a small fire was discovered in the basement of Little Lucharitos in Aquebogue, which just opened Friday. Police responded to an automatic alarm to find the southeast corner of the basement on fire. The Riverhead Fire Department responded and extinguished the fire, police said.

Owner Marc LaMaina was notified and responded to the scene. The fire does not appear to be suspicious, police said, and the extend of the damage has not been determined.

Mr. LaMaina said on Facebook the restaurant will be closed today, but “all is good.” He wrote that the fire marshal told him that because of the storm a “possible down draft with wind caused the flame on the heater to jump into some combustibles near [the] heater.”

Also, the Oysterponds Elementary School reported a two-hour delayed start Monday.

Photo caption:Highway crews block off eastbound Main Road in Cutchogue and divert traffic onto Depot Lane Monday morning. (Credit: Kelly Zegers)

joew@timesreview.com

A pole leans over Sound Avenue Monday morning. (Credit: Nicole Smith)

A tree blocking Calves Neck Road in Southold. (Credit: Kelly Zegers)

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The Mattituck and North Fork chambers of commerce will host a Meet the Candidates event Monday night for all contested Southold Town positions.

Attendees will be able to ask questions for candidates running for assessor, trustee, town council, highway superintendent and town justice.

The meeting starts at 6 p.m. at the North Fork Country Club on Main Road in Cutchogue. Attendance costs $40 per person and includes dinner. RSVP by sending an email here.

A similar forum was held in Orient earlier this month. Read about the Town Board candidates here and the Trustee candidates here.

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Shellfish harvesting has been temporarily prohibited in areas across Long Island, including in Riverhead and Southold towns, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation announced Monday.

“These temporary closures have been implemented due to the heavy rainfall and storm-water runoff that occurred in the wake of this past weekend’s rainfall,” the DEC said in a press release.

In Riverhead, all of Flanders Bay and tributaries west of a line extending southwesterly from Miamogue Point to the northermost point of Red Cedar Point is closed. In Southold, all of Orient Harbor, Hallock Bay and its tributaries north and east of a line extending westerly from the Bug Light lighthouse to the wooden jetty at the northern side of the mouth of Spring Pond in East Marion is closed.

The DEC will re-open areas as soon as possible based on the results of water quality testing to be conducted on samples that will be collected from affected areas over the next several days.

A recorded message is available by calling 631-444-0480. The message will be updated during the course of the temporary closures. Information can also be found on the DEC website.

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My name is Gina Lepine. I’m the executive director of animal behavior and training here at the North Fork Animal Welfare League.

The North Fork Animal Welfare League runs the Riverhead and Southold animal shelters, so I work between both facilities.

I started to do volunteer work with dogs in 2010, and that was it, I just got reeled in.

I wound up volunteering down at the local shelter after that, and there were some dogs there that they deemed aggressive, which I did not think they were. At that point, I was not allowed to handle them unless I became a certified dog trainer, So I became a one.

There’s no normal day here, which is part of what makes the job so cool. I do behavior assessments on dogs as they come in. We adjust and adapt how we handle each dog to whatever their specific behavior is, to what we want to change it to. We do group walks, play groups with dogs, we do agility with dogs. The list is just about endless with all the different things we can do with dogs.

We are very flexible here because the ultimate goal is to get dogs and cats into their forever homes. One of the great things about this organization is that we’re small enough that we can adapt to the people in the community. We also offer at-home follow-ups. Just because a dog gets adopted doesn’t mean we wash our hands; we’re here.

Gina Lepine. (Credit: Rachel Siford)

My favorite part about the job is getting to see a dog go into its new home and seeing the love on people’s faces before they even get out of our parking lot. It’s not just about the animals, it’s about the people the animals go to live with.

We do community service and go into the local schools and we also do Dog Day Fridays on some of the local news channels.

The great thing about my job is that it’s not a one person thing. All of the staff between both facilities work together to put dogs into their forever homes. I will create a behavior modification program for a dog, and the staff will help and follow up and we also get the volunteers involved so the behavior stays that way.

We have been able to place even some of the senior dogs. It’s just great because they all deserve a second chance, just like we do.

‘The Work We Do’ is a Suffolk Times multimedia project profiling workers on the North Fork. This weekly feature is made possible by Peconic Landing. See more photos on Instagram @thesuffolktimes. See the complete list of previous profiles here.

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Julie Milliman isn’t one to dwell on statistics or records. What really counts to the Mattituck High School girls cross-country coach are the smiles on the faces of her runners.

And the Tuckers sure have had a lot to smile about. This year already they have won a League VII title with a 5-0 record, and last Thursday they picked up their third straight Division IV crown in the Section XI Division Championships.

But the team’s greatest achievements may be yet to come. Mattituck will bid for a sixth straight Suffolk County title Friday in the Section XI Championships at Sunken Meadow State Park.

Pretty big stuff, huh?

“Actually, we don’t really talk about it much,” Milliman said. “It’s just like if we focus on our personal times, it will fall into place.”

So far, things have fallen into place quite well for Mattituck. Despite losing about a half-dozen runners from last year’s team to graduation, Mattituck has adjusted exceedingly well with a young team. Five of its top seven runners are freshmen or sophomores.

“It’s nice to be young because they have a lot of potential to grow into,” said Milliman.

At the head of the pack are sophomore Payton Maddaloni and freshman Kylie Conroy. They were the team’s Nos. 2 and 3 runners, respectively, last year.

“It’s really nice to have those two close together,” Milliman said. “Those two have really been separated by seconds each race.”

Maddaloni, in her third year on the team, is “a great athlete and she really likes to see her times improve over the course of the season,” Milliman said. “She really doesn’t like to settle.”

Conroy is in her second cross-country season. “She loves to run,” Milliman said. “She’s always so positive, always smiling.”

In the Division Championships at Sunken Meadow’s 3.1-mile course, Maddaloni (21 minutes, 18.61 seconds) and Conroy (21:21.69) took the next two places in Division IV after Shelter Island senior Lindsey Gallagher, who was first in 20:09.81.

Maddaloni, Conroy and Mattituck freshman Bella Masotti (fifth in 22:15.59) ran their fastest times ever on the course. Following them to the finish line were teammates Meg Dinizio (sixth in 24:37.44), Jane DiGregorio (seventh in 24:39.97), Emma Reidy (eighth in 24:41.70) and Liv Shutte (10th in 28:08.00).

Mattituck was first in the division with 23 points, beating out runner-up Shelter Island by 14 points.

Asked what it will be like Friday when the Tuckers step up to the starting line before chasing what would be the team’s sixth consecutive county title, Milliman said: “The girls are nervous every time, no matter what, but I feel like we put all the work in, then it’s running the race. As long as you put the work in, you should feel confident going in.”

Since 2012, when Mattituck turned in its best finish ever by coming in fourth place in the state, the Tuckers have gone 28-4 in league meets. Milliman, who is in her fifth year coaching the girls team after running Mattituck’s boys team for four years, has a 24-3 record.

“It’s been another good year,” she said.

Now that’s something to smile about.

bliepa@timesreview.com

Photo caption: Mattituck sophomore Payton Maddaloni turned in a time of 21 minutes, 18.61 seconds to finish second among Division IV runners at Sunken Meadow State Park. (Credit: Robert O’Rourk)

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Peter Charles Digons passed away Oct. 6, 2017 in Charlotte, N.C. He was 50.

He is survived by his wife, Jennifer Strickland Digons of Charlotte and children Tori Strickland of Charlotte and Trey Strickland of Denver, Colo.; mother, Jackie, of Mattituck; brothers, Eric, of North Easton Mass., Luke, of Brookline, Mass. and sister, Leigh of New York, N.Y.; cousins, Lauren Schiller-Baker and Charles Thom and his closest lifelong friend, David Wowak of Sag Harbor.

Peter was born Sept. 14, 1967, in Brooklyn. He was a 1985 graduate of Mattituck High School and graduated Kent State University with physics and math majors. He was a gifted guitarist and loved jazz and classical guitar, especially Wes Montgomery and Joe Pass.

Peter is predeceased by his father, James, who passed to him the love of guitar. Throughout his life he enjoyed teaching guitar. He taught children at Musicians in Motion in North Carolina. Peter was employed by Foley-Baker, restoring and tuning pipe organs, most notably the Duke University pipe organ. He also held a real estate broker’s license in North Carolina

Peter loved the North Fork where he spent most of his life and had many friends and treasured memories. His smile and personality lit up a room and his kindness, generosity, sense of humor and laughter will remain and shine forever.

“If you get confused, just listen to the music play.” (Franklin’s Tower, Grateful Dead)

The family held a private service.

Donations may be made to Allergy and Asthma Foundation, ASPCA or any animal rescue fund of choice.

This is a paid notice. 

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Longtime Greenport resident West Needham Ruroede died Oct. 21. He was 58. 

The son of Vance A. Wilson and Carol J. (Needham) Ruroede, he was born March 31, 1959, in San Francisco.

Mr. Ruroede graduated from Greenport High School, Class of 1977 and from the Maine Maritime Academy. He was self-employed.

Mr. Ruroede was predeceased by his mother, Carol Ruroede and stepfather, Walter O. Ruroede. He is survived by his father, Vance Wilson; of Marin, Calif.; his sisters, Deidre Praught, of Cudjoe Key, Fla. and Karen Lamb Wiltshire of Toccoa, Ga.; his cousins, Andy, of Greenport, Bart, of East Marion and Carl, of South Carolina; uncle Bill Needham, cousin Patti Needham and cousin Jan Stenger, all of Ohio; uncle Bob Needham and cousin Betsy Needham, both of Oregon and cousin Nancy Needham of New Hampshire. He was also predeceased by his significant other, Patricia Dinizio.

A memorial visitation will be scheduled for mid-November.

Arrangements were entrusted to Horton-Mathie Funeral Home in Greenport.

This is a paid notice. 

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Paul Gerard Edwards, 86, formerly of Mattituck and recently of Muncy, Pa., died Oct. 27, 2017, at his home.

Born Feb. 28, 1931, in Riverhead, he was a son of the late Madison V. and Marjorie J. (Gerard) Edwards. On March 3, 1952, he married the former Carolyn Kratjewski, who survives. Together they celebrated 65 years of marriage.

Paul was a graduate of Riverhead public schools and attended Suffolk County Community College. He served honorably in the U.S. Marine Corps during the Korean War. Paul later retired after 37 years working as a supervisor in the hazardous waste division of Brookhaven National Laboratory.

He was a member of Mattituck Presbyterian Church and also a member of the Riverhead Masonic Lodge 645, where he was a past district deputy grand master.

Paul once led a Sea Scout ship in the early 1960s to help better educate youth on boating skills and maritime history. He greatly enjoyed sailing and woodworking and built two sailboats from scratch. Paul also repaired and rebuilt several other boats.

Surviving, in addition to his wife, are three daughters, Dr. Terry L. Edwards of Freeport, Brenda E. Kuritzky of Ossining, N.Y., and Donna J. Zuna of Hyde Park, N.Y.; and one granddaughter, Stephanie Wood of Hyde Park. He was predeceased by a sister, Joan Edwards Stearns.

A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 8, at Tuthill-Mangano Funeral Home in Riverhead.

Condolences may be left at tuthillfh.com.

This is a paid notice. 

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Officers responded to a disabled sailboat in Gardiners Bay last Tuesday, according to a Southold Town police report.

The vessel’s anchor had broken free and the boat was on the beach at Orient Beach State Park around 10:30 a.m., officials said.

A Connecticut man and woman were on board and were helped off the boat by officers and transferred to the ferry at Orient Point, the report stated.

No other details about the incident were immediately available.

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