Emergency Response Saves Taxpayer Dollars
A group of Huntington School District building and grounds department employees responded to an emergency call on a recent Friday night and ultimately saved taxpayers more than $6,000 by handling the necessary repairs in-house rather than bringing in outside contractors.
It was around midnight when Suffolk County Police notified the district’s operations supervisor, Al White that a large amount of water was pouring onto Oakwood Road, apparently coming from Jefferson Primary School.
Mr. White was sleeping when the call came, but he quickly responded to the scene, where he was met by Jefferson’s head custodian, Tom Ehlers and maintenance mechanic George Austin. The three waded into the water and used flashlights to examine the area and the RPZ valve vault.
Working until about 2:30 a.m. and with Mr. Austin taking the lead, the problem was isolated and leak was temporarily solved by shutting off the water supply to the school.
The next morning the trio was joined by Huntington High School chief custodian Larry DiMattei, who had been working on a project at Woodhull Intermediate School.
“I asked them if they wanted me to attempt to get an outside contractor to make the necessary repair and without hesitation they said they would undertake the task,” said Paul L. Rispoli, district director of facilities. “I doubt if we could find another district’s maintenance staff that would have attempted such a repair.”
The group used shovels to remove soil and expose piping that carries water to the school building. After it was determined a backhoe was needed, Mr. White called New York Avenue based A. & J. Antorino Co., which responded to the scene in just 15 minutes.
After the backhoe removed a large amount of dirt, a break in the four-inch water main that feeds the building was discovered. Mr. Austin led the effort to replace a large section of pipe, which was welded into place and the topsoil was backfilled.
“In checking with a couple of contractors in the area, I have gotten estimates of $10,000 to make such a repair instead of the $3,700 it cost us to make the repairs in house," said Mr. Rispoli. "I want to thank Al White, Thomas Ehlers, George Austin and Larry DiMattei for their hard work and dedication to the district.”
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