Community preparedness — Connecticut
Nor'easters, hurricanes, ice storms, and power outages that can last for weeks. Connecticut's 169 towns each run their own emergency management, and the volunteer networks — CERT teams, ham radio clubs, fire departments — are how neighbors keep neighbors safe. ARRL headquarters is in Newington for a reason.
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Community calendar
CERT trainings, canning workshops, ham radio exams, garden workdays, first aid classes. Events from local organizations that build community resilience.
8
Extension regions
2
NWS forecast offices
20+
Amateur radio clubs
1
Red Cross region (CT & RI)
Where to plug in
Connecticut is governed at the town level — 169 towns, each with its own emergency management office. That local structure is both the challenge and the strength. When a nor'easter knocks out power across Fairfield County, it's the town-level CERT teams, volunteer fire departments, and ham radio operators who bridge the gap. The organizations below connect that local infrastructure to statewide networks.
UConn Extension, part of the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources, operates regional offices across Connecticut including offices in Haddam (Middlesex County), Bethlehem (Litchfield County), Brooklyn (Windham County), Vernon (Tolland County), and the main campus in Storrs. While Connecticut's eight counties no longer function as government entities, extension programming is organized regionally to serve all communities.
The Master Gardener program trains hundreds of volunteers who deliver free gardening education through plant clinics, demonstration gardens, and community workshops adapted to Connecticut's Zone 5b–7a climate. The Master Composter program teaches composting methods. Extension also runs food safety education, nutrition programs, 4-H youth development (one of the oldest in the country), and community development programs. The Integrated Pest Management program helps homeowners and farmers manage pests without excessive chemicals.
The Connecticut Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security (DEMHS) coordinates the state's emergency preparedness and operates through five emergency management regions. Connecticut's town-based government structure means each of the 169 towns has its own emergency management director, creating one of the most decentralized but locally responsive systems in the country.
CERT programs are active across the state. Many Connecticut towns run their own CERT teams, including Hartford, New Haven, Stamford, Greenwich, Westport, Fairfield, and dozens of smaller communities. After Superstorm Sandy devastated the shoreline in 2012 and the surprise October snowstorm of 2011 left hundreds of thousands without power for over a week, CERT enrollment surged. Training is free and typically runs 8 sessions.
The American Red Cross Connecticut and Rhode Island Region serves the entire state. Chapters across Connecticut offer first aid, CPR, AED, lifeguarding, and water safety classes year-round. The region maintains trained volunteers for shelter operations, disaster assessment, and home fire response in every part of the state.
During Superstorm Sandy, Red Cross opened shelters along Connecticut's shoreline and served thousands of displaced residents from Bridgeport to Milford to East Haven. During the October 2011 snowstorm, Red Cross ran warming centers across the state as over 800,000 households lost power — many for more than a week. Connecticut's Red Cross volunteer pipeline is always open, with shelter operations and home fire response as the most common entry points.
Connecticut has over 20 amateur radio clubs in the ARRL Connecticut Section, part of the New England Division. Connecticut holds a special place in the ham radio world: ARRL national headquarters has been located in Newington since 1938. The state's ARES network is activated during nor'easters, hurricanes, and extended power outages, providing backup communications for town emergency management offices when commercial systems fail.
Getting licensed costs $15 for the exam and about $35 for a basic handheld radio. Study at hamstudy.org, then find an exam session. Clubs in Hartford, New Haven, Bridgeport, Stamford, Danbury, and throughout the Connecticut River Valley host exams regularly. The annual ARRL Field Day in June sees Connecticut clubs across the state set up emergency stations.
Two NWS forecast offices serve Connecticut: NWS New York/Upton (covering southern and central Connecticut, including the shoreline, Hartford, and the Connecticut River Valley) and NWS Albany (covering the northern tier, including Litchfield County and parts of Tolland and Windham counties). Each office runs SKYWARN spotter training.
Connecticut's weather hazards include nor'easters that can dump 2 feet of snow or bring damaging winds, tropical remnants that push storm surge into Long Island Sound communities, severe thunderstorms with damaging hail, and ice storms that bring down trees and power lines. The October 2011 snowstorm proved that early-season weather can be as dangerous as midwinter events. Training is free and runs about 2 hours.
Connecticut has nearly 200 public libraries overseen by the Connecticut State Library. Libraries like the Hartford Public Library, New Haven Free Public Library, and Ferguson Library (Stamford) run extensive community programming: seed libraries, maker spaces, gardening workshops, and community meeting space. Connecticut's strong tradition of town-based libraries means even small communities have well-maintained branches.
CT State Community College (formed from the consolidation of 12 former community colleges) serves every region of the state with campuses in Hartford, New Haven, Bridgeport, Norwalk, Manchester, Waterbury, and beyond. Programs offer affordable continuing education in EMT certification, fire science, welding, electrical work, and other practical trades.
Why this matters
Connecticut has been hit twice in two years by events that exposed just how dependent the state is on its electric grid. In October 2011, an early nor'easter dumped heavy wet snow on trees still carrying their leaves. Over 800,000 households lost power. Some didn't get it back for 11 days. Then in October 2012, Superstorm Sandy pushed record storm surge into Long Island Sound, flooding coastal communities from Greenwich to Stonington and knocking out power to another 625,000 households.
In both events, it was town-level volunteer networks that filled the gap between disaster and utility restoration. CERT teams conducted welfare checks on elderly residents in darkened neighborhoods. Ham radio operators provided communications for town emergency operations centers when phone systems were overwhelmed. Volunteer fire departments ran generators at critical facilities. Churches and community centers opened as warming stations. Neighbors with wood stoves and generators became neighborhood hubs.
The experience fundamentally changed how Connecticut thinks about preparedness. Town emergency management offices expanded their volunteer rosters. CERT enrollment grew. The state invested in generator infrastructure for critical facilities. But the core lesson was the same one every disaster teaches: when the grid goes down, the people who trained before the storm are the ones who keep the community running.
Every organization on this page exists so that your town is ready for the next time the lights go out.
The foundation
Community resilience begins with a household that can take care of itself. Cover the first 72 hours, then extend outward to your street, your neighborhood, your town.
Start with the first 72 hours