‘A big flash’: Neighbors clean up after storm wreaks havoc on Hadley area

Neighbors in portions of Saratoga and Warren Counties were still picking up the pieces of Tuesday’s late afternoon storms a day later.

National Grid’s website reports that most of the hundreds of homes that lost power have it back.

Hadley was hit hard, the storm so powerful it destroyed enormous old trees. Neighbors on Old Corinth Road described harrowing moments as the rain crashed down sideways and they ran into the basement for cover.

The hum of generators and the smell of freshly cut wood hung in the air Wednesday afternoon.

Neighbors say, the storm only took a minute to motor its way through town.  

“The sound was very, very loud almost a rumbling sound,” said one neighbor in Hadley.

The storm left days of cleanup in its wake.

Mother Nature scooped up massive old trees—many neighbors left with wood strewn across the yard.

“We have a lot of firewood now, cause it’s an oak tree,” said Hadley resident Diane Demetriou.

Demetriou is able to laugh after the fact, but six inches closer and her massive oak tree could have devastated her home.

“I’m so thankful that the wind went that way and did not go into our house, because it would have taken our house,” she remarked.

She and other neighbors are looking at the bright side as they have a lot of work ahead of them.

“Everybody kept driving by, walking by, offering us food, water. The community is wonderful here. That’s why we stay here,” Demetriou said.

National Grid’s website says the company expects the lights to be back on by the early evening.