Community on Display During the Blizzard of 2026

The Blizzard of 2026 wasn’t hype. It was the real deal, but what stood out most wasn’t just the storm.

It was the community that showed up in response to it.

It started with the meteorologists who tracked the storm’s path and intensity with clarity and discipline.

They didn’t oversell it. They didn’t sugarcoat it.

They gave us honest information so families could prepare. That steady professionalism matters.

As conditions deteriorated, our State and local police coordinated with plow drivers across Rhode Island to keep people off the roads and begin the long and arduous task of digging us out once it was safe.

It wasn’t flashy work. It was methodical, disciplined, and necessary.

Then came the long hours after the snow stopped falling.

Tree crews and linemen from RI Energy and surrounding states navigated unplowed roads and dangerous conditions to restore power.

We watched outages drop from more than 40,000 to under 4,000 in less than 24 hours. That kind of progress doesn’t happen by accident. It happens because skilled professionals work through the night in freezing conditions so the rest of us can return to normal life.

But community response doesn’t stop with public safety.

The owners and employees of small restaurants, coffee shops, convenience stores, and gas stations made it into work, many before their own driveways were cleared, to keep first responders, plow drivers, linemen, and healthcare workers fed and fueled.

From hot coffee to a sandwich when it’s convenient and a full tank of gas to keep everyone moving.

Those small acts keep the larger machine running.

I want to share one personal story.

Across the street from us lives an elderly couple. I’ll call them Bob and Joan. Bob uses a walker and struggles with bouts of forgetfulness. They rely on electric heat.

After about 12 hours without power, Joan made the difficult decision to call 911 and ask if they could be taken to their daughter’s home a few miles away. I’ll call her Melissa.

Melissa thankfully still had power.

For Bob, being somewhere familiar was far better than going to an unfamiliar warming center.

Within 15 minutes of that call, a town truck made two passes on our street with the plow. We became one of the few side streets in the neighborhood to be plowed that early.

An ambulance arrived shortly thereafter.

Three EMTs shoveled a path from the road to the front door, checked on Bob and Joan, and carefully transported them to Melissa’s.

When they reached Melissa’s neighborhood, the roads hadn’t yet been cleared.

The ambulance got as close as it safely could and made the final steps on foot.

The EMT’s patiently guided Bob carefully through the snow to get him inside somewhere warm and familiar.

Efficient. Compassionate. Determined.

Sitting in my warm house later in the night, I was thankful that our power was restored so quickly and never more proud to be part of this community.

Storms test infrastructure.

They test preparation, but most of all, they test people.

This week, Rhode Island showed its character.

To the meteorologists, to our police officers and plow drivers, to the EMTs and firefighters, to the linemen and tree crews, to the small business owners and employees who kept the lights on and the coffee hot…

THANK YOU!

You kept us informed. You kept us safe. You kept us together.