Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced that seven state park campgrounds in southeastern Connecticut will close at noon Friday morning until noon Saturday to protect campers from strong winds and heavy rains expected from Hurricane Earl.
“We know that many families are looking forward to marking the end of summer by camping at one of our state parks over the Labor Day weekend,” Governor Rell said. “Given the latest information available on the predicted path and intensity of this storm, however, we believe it makes sense to close the campgrounds where the impact from Hurricane Earl is expected to be the most severe.
“The current predictions indicate the hurricane will not strike the state directly – but it is still expected to bring steady winds of as much as 50 mph and even higher gusts, along with heavy rain,” the Governor said. “Safety simply must come first. The simple fact is that sustained winds of 50 mph do not mix well with tents, canvas awnings and other temporary structures. Moreover, because the leaves have not yet fallen, we expect the high winds are likely to cause more tree damage than a wintertime nor’easter.”
Governor Rell said the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) will ask all campers to leave the seven affected campgrounds Friday morning. DEP plans to allow campers back to the parks by Saturday afternoon unless the impact of the storm or weather conditions require a longer closing.
The campgrounds to be closed are:
* Hammonasset Beach State Park, Madison
* Rocky Neck State Park, East Lyme
* Hopeville Pond State Park, Jewett City
* Devil’s Hopyard State Park, East Haddam
* Salt Rock Campground, Sprague
* Mount Misery Campground, Pachaug State Forest, Voluntown
* Green Falls Campground, Pachaug State Forest, Voluntown
DEP is working with the company that manages its campground reservation system, Reserve America, to provide a refund for all campers who had reservations for Friday night at one of these seven parks.
In addition to the campgrounds, all facilities at these seven parks will be closed from 12 p.m. Friday until 12 p.m. Saturday.
“At this point, we expect that state parks and state park campgrounds in other parts of Connecticut will remain open,” Governor Rell said. “We will not close them unless predictions about the storm make that necessary. Anyone planning to camp anywhere in Connecticut on Friday night, however, should keep a careful eye on the weather – especially people planning to camp in tents.”
Updated information on state park and state park campground closings can be found on the DEP website at www.ct.gov/dep.
