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TARRYTOWN, N.Y. This past year, 2011 might best be remembered as the year Tarrytown and Irvington residents experienced an earthquake, a hurricane and a white Halloween.
The earthquake didn't cause much damage. Thousands lost power after Augusts Hurricane Irene, which arrived in the area as a tropical storm, and a freak nor'easter hit the area just before Halloween as tree branches fell and hit power lines.
A 5.8 magnitude earthquake that originated in Virginia caused some anxiety in August after residents could feel a slight shaking.
Tarrytown resident Stefanie Casarella was sitting on her couch watching TV when she said she felt the couch shake ever so slightly.
It did it twice and I got weirded out by it, she wrote on The Daily Tarrytown's Facebook page. All of a sudden all of the news channels had breaking news so I knew I wasn't going crazy!
Residents had a few days' notice of Irene and they used that time to stock up on emergency supplies, such as flashlights and water. Some remained without power for several days after the storm, although officials praised village employees' response to the aftermath.
Roads throughout Westchester County were shut down because of flooding or tree damage. The Bridge St. parking lot in Irvington was also flooded when the Hudson River overflowed.
Tarrytown and Irvington were both gearing up for their village-wide Halloween events when a nor'easter dumped a couple of feet of snow onto the area. Both villages were able to plow snow off the streets pretty quickly, but tree damage was high because the leaves had not yet fallen.
It's the worst I've seen in the 14 years we've been running the trails committee, Irvington Trails Committee Chair Rich Goldman said of the damage from the snowstorm. Girl Scouts from several troops came to help clean the trails. Some Irvington residents also joined in after the village requested volunteers.
As with Hurricane Irene, some residents continued to be in the dark as Con Edison worked for days to restore power. Both village Halloween parades were cancelled, along with several Historic Hudson Valley events.
Police from both villages warned against trick or treating because of the storm damage.
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