Rain falls and waves crash in Olcott

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - Parts of Niagara County could see huge waves and potential lake shore flooding from Lake Ontario, because of Hurricane Sandy. Early Monday afternoon, the weather in Olcott is rainy and waves are crashing, but it is only a taste of what the area could see.

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Hurricane Sandy is yet to make landfall in western New York, but hour by hour its winds are moving it. Highway and water crews for the Town of Newfane are preparing for Sandy’s wrath.

Highway worker John Smith said, “We were going to do it anyways, but I think it’s probably the reason we’re doing it now, is the upcoming storm we’re expecting.”

Crews are pushing the sand from the banks to the walls, so when the storm hits, the sand doesn’t push out to the lake. While crews are working, some residents are debating whether they are going to prepare their homes or evacuate the area.

As residents learned the area could see 16-foot waves, they started to worry. One Olcott resident says if the storm hits, she will take shelter away from her home.

The Niagara County Sheriff’s Department will be posting information on outages, closures, flooding and down trees on their Facebook page.

Niagara County Fire Coordinator John Schultz says the emergency command center for Niagara County is being assembled near the sheriff’s office. He says they will monitor the impact of the storm for every aspect of emergency services.