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Passenger details terrifying moments

Saturday, May 18, 2013 by:Amanda Cuda

The above photo was taken inside one of the trains that collided at the Bridgeport/Fairfield line Friday. Photos were taken by passenger Helen Dodson of Fairfield.

Helen Dodson usually drives from her home in Fairfield to her job in the public affairs department of Yale University in Fairifield. But, on Friday, her daughter was in town and wanted to use the car. So Dodson took the train, making her one of the many people who was on board of one of the two trains that collided at the Fairfield/Bridgeport line Friday evening. Above are some photos she took from the inside of the train after the collision.

Dodson, who was on the train from New Haven, said she knew something wasn’t right when the train began slowing down after the Bridgeport stop. Shortly thereafter, “you heard sort of a screeching sound and it just jolted to a stop.” Dodson said she saw clouds of dust and the lights went out in the car. Then someone came on the PA system asking if there were any doctors or nurses on board. “No one knew what was going on,” Dodson said. “We were just sort of stunned walking around.”

Passengers were then asked to evacuate. Dodson said she was lucky — she wasn’t hurt, and didn’t see anyone who was badly injured. Mostly, she just saw people who were scared. “A lot of people were in shocking,” she said. “They were crying and very upset.”

Hector Santiago: The man of ‘no’

Saturday, May 18, 2013 by:Amanda Cuda

Leaning over a railing of the Fairfield train station Saturday afternoon, Hector Santiago looked from a distance like just another prospective train passenger, waiting for the rest of his party to show up at the station. But Santiago wasn’t a sad passenger waiting for a train that wasn’t coming. He was the man of ‘no.’

Santiago, district manager for Metro North, was posted at the train station for much of Saturday mainly to tell people that there would be no train. Service to and from that station, and other, was suspended following a train derailment and crash at the Bridgeport/Fairfield line Friday evening. Santiago was one piece in a multi-faceted warning system, which also included a long PA announcement about the suspension and an illuminated sign announcing the suspension.

Luckily for him, Santiago didn’t see a lot of angry commuters while standing vigil on the platform.

“Things have been pretty slow,” he said. “I’ve been noticing a lot of people swinging by who seem to know the trains are suspended, but are looking for a contingency plan for Monday morning.”

So far, Santiago said, he isn’t aware of a contingency. He said he’s been referring most people seeking a train into New York to the South Norwalk station, where train service was still running. But he only saw a few people who didn’t seem aware of the suspension.

One of the few groups who ventured to the station Saturday afternoon was one led by Deirdre Colon of Wolcott. But Colon wasn’t a frustrated commuter looking for a train. She was just a frustrated mom who left her car at the train station on Friday and boarded a train to New York to take her son to an audition for an AT&T commercial. She and her son Gemini, 11, were supposed to be on one of the trains that crashed, but they took a later one because Gemini wanted to stop and visit the Empire State Building after his audition.

“I saved everybody’s life,” Gemini declared.

Deirdre said it became clear that something was wrong when the train was delayed, but train personnel weren’t telling passengers anything. “Nobody really knew what was happening, but if you were on Facebook, you saw what was going on,” she said. She said she was on the train for an hour and a half and “I was starting to get claustrophobic.”

Eventually, the train stopped in South Norwalk, and her husband came to pick her up.

Furnace fails at Rescue Mission

Tuesday, January 29, 2013 by:Amanda Cuda

In the midst of cold temperatures and snowfall, the furnace at Bridgeport Rescue Mission’s Women’s Center has failed.

“Of course this is the worst time of year for this to happen,” said Executive Director Terry Wilcox in a press release. “Here in our Women’s Center, the students in our New Life Discipleship Program are working hard in their classes, spiritual studies and life-skills training, and we want them to be warm and comfortable. Since we’re faced with this challenge right now, we need to take the opportunity to replace our old oil-burning gas furnace with a more efficient gas unit, and we need to do it as quickly as possible.”

Wilcox said the cost for the new furnace is approximately $25,000. They’re looking for donations to help cover the cost or even an individual or business to step up and provide the entire unit.

Donations can be made online at www.BridgeportRescueMission.org. Those who might have resources for providing the entire unit are encouraged to contact Linda Casey, the Mission’s director of development and strategic planning, at 203-333-4087, ext. 110.

Milford man dies about a week after his philanthropic mother

Wednesday, January 23, 2013 by:Amanda Cuda

The son of beloved local philanthropist Ann Marie Tarinelli, who died Jan. 11 from complications following a broken hip, has also died, a little more than a week after his mother’s passing.
James Notarnicola, 53, of Milford, died Monday at Milford Hospital after a long illness. His father, Harry Notarnicola, also of Milford, said he had had liver disease for some time. His death came only days after the funeral for Tarinelli, a Trumbull resident well-known in the region for feeding the homeless under the John Street Bridge in Bridgeport.
Harry Notarnicola, who was divorced from Tarinelli, said the double loss has hit his family hard. “It’s such a tragedy the way this happened,” he said.
Before having to stop work for medical reasons, James Notarnicola worked for HN Food Service. His dad said he enjoyed traveling and would frequently visit his son, Christopher James Notarnicola, in Florida.
In addition to his father and son, he leaves behind longtime girlfriend Andrea Mastri. Funeral services for James Notarnicola will take place Friday at noon at St. Mary’s Church, 70 Gulf St., Milford. Interment will be private.
Friends may call on Thursday from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Cyril F. Mullins Funeral Home, 399 White plains Road, Trumbull.

Goodwill needs donations

Tuesday, January 15, 2013 by:Amanda Cuda

Goodwill stores are in urgent need of household items like dishes, small appliances, cookware, knickknacks and electrical items. Clothing and furniture are also needed. Currently the stores are having difficulty stocking their shelves and racks. Goodwill stores rely on donated items. It is crucial to Goodwill’s mission of helping people train for and find jobs that donations keep coming in.

The sale of donations through Goodwill’s 15 retail stores translates into employment assistance, job training, community outreach and other programs for the community that benefit thousands of people each year. Last year alone, Goodwill of Western and Northern Connecticut provided services to over 17,800 people.

Donors may drop off items at local Goodwill stores and attended donation stations located at many convenient locations throughout Connecticut. A Goodwill staff member will help the donor unload items and provide a donation receipt for tax purposes.

Goodwill is a non-profit organization that provides employment and support services to people with disabilities and other employment challenges. Goodwill programs help people gain the skills they need to obtain and keep a job so that they may become self-sufficient.

Call 800-423-9787 or visit www.gwct.org for a list of retail stores and donation locations near you.

Rescue Mission needs sleeping bags

Monday, December 10, 2012 by:Amanda Cuda

This holiday season Bridgeport Rescue Mission will bring warmth and comfort to hundreds of men, women and children at their Sleeping Bag and Bedtime Bag Give-Away, Dec. 15, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Nehemiah Commission building, 1600 State St.

This is the first year for the event where mission staff and volunteers will distribute new sleeping bags to adults and children to ensure they’re never without a bed. Boys and girls will also receive gift bags filled with a small stuffed animal, toothbrush, toothpaste, washcloth, mild soap and a bedtime story book.

Mission friends and partners are encouraged to purchase and donate new adult-size sleeping bags in solid colors, as well as the gifts that will be included in the children’s bedtime bags. The items may be delivered to the Mission’s Donation Center at 1069 Connecticut Ave., Tuesdays through Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. now through Dec. 14. They may also purchase “virtual” sleeping bags by donating $20 for each one on the Mission’s website, www.BridgeportRescueMission.org.

Trumbull do-gooder seeks food, toiletry donations

Monday, November 12, 2012 by:Amanda Cuda

It’s no secret that many food banks and homeless shelters are hurting for donations for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday.

But so is Anne Marie Tarinelli, a Trumbull woman who serves Bridgeport’s homeless under the John Street bridge in the city every Sunday. She’s looking for donations of turkeys and other food so she can serve a Thanksgiving meal to those she helps. Tarinelli said, right now, she doesn’t have anything, and all donations would be appreciated.

She’s also looking for toilet paper, soap, men’s socks and toiletries for some gift bags she’s making for the Christmas holiday. If you are interesting in donating, call 203-268-5553. If you have items you want to donate, you can leave them in bins outside her home at 18 Country Lane in Trumbull, but Tarinelli said she’d like to meet people when they donate — so be sure to say hi.

Bridgeport Rescue Mission needs turkeys!

Monday, November 5, 2012 by:Amanda Cuda

Bridgeport Rescue Mission will soon begin packing 3,000 Thanksgiving Dinner Pantry Boxes that will be distributed to near-homeless and working-poor families in Bridgeport and South Norwalk. The boxes will be filled with all the fixings—including frozen turkeys—that poverty-stricken men, women and children need to prepare a traditional Thanksgiving dinner in their own homes.

Executive Director Terry Wilcox said the Mission needs to receive 3,500 frozen turkeys—12 to 24 pounds each—to ensure no one in need will go without a turkey for Thanksgiving. Donated turkeys are also used in the Thanksgiving Day dinners the Mission will distribute to hungry and homeless people from their Mobile Kitchen and in the meals that will be served to Mission students and needy men, women and children from their main dining room.

Cclose to 90 percent of the food items used in the more than 600,000 meals the Mission provides at the holidays and throughout the year are donated by individuals, companies and church congregations who organize food drives. The Mission also needs the basics such as stuffing mix, canned sweet potatoes, peas, corn, green beans and cranberry sauce and shares a complete list of items needed on their website at www.BridgeportRescueMission.org.

Frozen turkeys can be dropped off at the Mission’s Donation Center, 1069 Connecticut Avenue, Unit 2-B, Bridgeport, every Tuesday through Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. You can also donate “virtual” turkeys by making a gift of $20 for each bird you would like to contribute. Financial donations can be made online at www.BridgeportRescueMission.org.

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