Community Corner

Mt. Sinai Mom Trapped Overnight on Friday

One woman was unsure if she would see her kids and husband ever again after staying in her car overnight.

When a Mt. Sinai woman found herself trapped in her car during Friday night's storm, she feared the worst.

Priscilla Arena, according to an Associated Press report, took out a pen and sheet of paper after several hours stranded on Route 83 in Farmingville – one of several trouble spots reported by county officials – and wrote a note to her son, daughter, and husband.

"My love will never die — remember, always," she wrote. 

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Arena, the report states, was one of nearly 200 Suffolk residents who found themselves trapped in a scary snowstorm that brought over 30 inches of snow in some parts.

In Lake Grove, 20 standed motorists were brought to safety by local fire crews, while a county spokeswoman reported that Brookhaven Town Hall was used as a warming shelter for individuals left out in the cold overnight on Route 83. Arena was among them.

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A Setauket Fire Department chief called the blizzard "a nightmare for our community," a sentiment likely felt elsewhere, as deaths were reported in Northport, on the North Fork, and one in Selden.

"Because of the unprecedented snowfall and its inherent dangers, our response was limited to life threatening conditions," said the Chief, Dennis Mirante.

Arena was rescued by an Army canvas truck 12 hours after she was stranded, according to the report.

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