Tornadoes in Nassau but no Curran or Clavin -- only Saladino shows up

                                                                             

Joseph Saladino


Four tornadoes touched down on Long Island on Saturday, including three locations in the Town of Hempstead: Woodmere, Uniondale and Levittown.

Tornadoes are rare events on Long Island, particularly in November.

But the only Nassau elected official who seemed concerned was Oyster Bay Supervisor Joseph Saladino. The Republican was interviewed by phone on News12 as the tv station's meteorologists reported live on the eery and frightening weather. Some Suffolk town supervisors also weighed in.

Again, lame duck County Executive Laura Curran was no where to be seen. The Baldwin Democrat has been out of the public eye since she lost her election Nov. 2 --though absentee ballots still must be counted.

While running for re-election, it seemed Curran would have a news conference with emergency officials every time it rained hard, cautioning residents to be careful.

Laura Curran

But not for tornado warnings? 

No tweets. No Facebook posts.

You might be tempted to say: what a difference an election makes.

But Republican Hempstead Town Supervisor Don Clavin, who won his election this month,  also did not tweet or post warnings, not did he appear Sunday to survey the damage in his town.

Don Clavin

A source said Clavin tried to reach News12 but could not get through.

 Okay.

It's hard not to become cynical when politicians only seems to be concerned about resident safety when an election is looming.

Saladino, a Republican who won his election, went on air and seemed  typical Saladino. The supervisor generally is everywhere during storms. 

"We got this," Saladino said.

UPDATE: Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone today declared a state of emergency in Suffolk because of the tornadoes. Still haven't heard anything from Curran. 

 

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