Monday, January 29, 2007
Outrage at death for lack of signal
The tragic death of a 63-year-old man who was unable to get cellphone service and was stranded for about 32 hours after his car went off the Adirondack Northway may be the event that finally prompts legislative action on a deal to bring cell towers to that remote northern stretch of I-87, a state lawmaker said Sunday.
"But it should not have come to this. This could have been prevented," said Sen. Elizabeth Little, R-Queensbury.
She and her North Country legislative counterpart, Assemblywoman Teresa Sayward, R-Willsboro, have been working for years on a deal that would allow cellphone towers on a 70-mile stretch of I-87 that is currently a zone where cellphone service doesn't exist.
Little said she was outraged when she learned about the ordeal of Alfred Langer and his wife, Barbara, 59. The Brooklyn couple were returning from a wedding in Montreal on Thursday when their car went off the road in the town of North Hudson, Essex County, sometime after 1 a.m. The temperature in the Adirondacks at the time was below zero.
Barbara Langer tried to summon help but couldn't get cellphone service. She and her husband were too injured to leave the car, and their vehicle was off the road and hidden by trees.
A State Trooper finally found their Lincoln Town Car some 32 hours later. By that time, Alfred Langer, recalled by friends as a sweet man who worked for the state Insurance Department for 37 years, had died of hypothermia.
Barbara Langer had a broken back, her feet were frozen, and she sat helpless as she watched her husband die. She was listed in fair condition Sunday at Fletcher Allen Health Care in Burlington, Vt.
The incident has incensed the Orthodox Jewish community in Brooklyn, where the Langers were active members.
"You mean we can talk to people on the moon, but we can't talk to people on Interstate 87?" said Abraham Isaac, a community activist who operates a blog called Voz Iz Neias, which is aimed at the Jewish community.
The blog has attracted dozens of comments on the incident, most expressing anger that Langer's death could have been prevented.
He said besides Langer's death, there were larger issues that should have spurred the construction of cell towers years ago.
"What if, God forbid, a truck carrying hazardous material should spring a leak in North Hudson? You never know what is coming across the border from Canada," he said.
Many Orthodox Jews travel the Northway between New York and Montreal because of family ties between the faith's large communities in those cities. Noah Zablotsky of Brooklyn makes the trip several times a year to visit a son and his family. He and his neighbors have had close calls on the lonely stretch between Warrensburg and Plattsburgh.
"I was running out of gas. It was dark out. I've never been so scared," he said. "I have a cellphone but I couldn't use it to call Triple-A."
http://timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=558192&category=REGIONOTHER&BCCode=LOCAL&newsdate=1/29/2007
The tragic death of a 63-year-old man who was unable to get cellphone service and was stranded for about 32 hours after his car went off the Adirondack Northway may be the event that finally prompts legislative action on a deal to bring cell towers to that remote northern stretch of I-87, a state lawmaker said Sunday.
"But it should not have come to this. This could have been prevented," said Sen. Elizabeth Little, R-Queensbury.
She and her North Country legislative counterpart, Assemblywoman Teresa Sayward, R-Willsboro, have been working for years on a deal that would allow cellphone towers on a 70-mile stretch of I-87 that is currently a zone where cellphone service doesn't exist.
Little said she was outraged when she learned about the ordeal of Alfred Langer and his wife, Barbara, 59. The Brooklyn couple were returning from a wedding in Montreal on Thursday when their car went off the road in the town of North Hudson, Essex County, sometime after 1 a.m. The temperature in the Adirondacks at the time was below zero.
Barbara Langer tried to summon help but couldn't get cellphone service. She and her husband were too injured to leave the car, and their vehicle was off the road and hidden by trees.
A State Trooper finally found their Lincoln Town Car some 32 hours later. By that time, Alfred Langer, recalled by friends as a sweet man who worked for the state Insurance Department for 37 years, had died of hypothermia.
Barbara Langer had a broken back, her feet were frozen, and she sat helpless as she watched her husband die. She was listed in fair condition Sunday at Fletcher Allen Health Care in Burlington, Vt.
The incident has incensed the Orthodox Jewish community in Brooklyn, where the Langers were active members.
"You mean we can talk to people on the moon, but we can't talk to people on Interstate 87?" said Abraham Isaac, a community activist who operates a blog called Voz Iz Neias, which is aimed at the Jewish community.
The blog has attracted dozens of comments on the incident, most expressing anger that Langer's death could have been prevented.
He said besides Langer's death, there were larger issues that should have spurred the construction of cell towers years ago.
"What if, God forbid, a truck carrying hazardous material should spring a leak in North Hudson? You never know what is coming across the border from Canada," he said.
Many Orthodox Jews travel the Northway between New York and Montreal because of family ties between the faith's large communities in those cities. Noah Zablotsky of Brooklyn makes the trip several times a year to visit a son and his family. He and his neighbors have had close calls on the lonely stretch between Warrensburg and Plattsburgh.
"I was running out of gas. It was dark out. I've never been so scared," he said. "I have a cellphone but I couldn't use it to call Triple-A."
http://timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=558192&category=REGIONOTHER&BCCode=LOCAL&newsdate=1/29/2007
Comments:
Kudos to Chaptzem... I sent emails to many of the names listed and actually recieved personal responses to all of them.
They are appreciative of the meesages and the one Assemblymember actually wrote that she is compiling all the messages to bring to a hearing.
Chaptzem - Great job!!!
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They are appreciative of the meesages and the one Assemblymember actually wrote that she is compiling all the messages to bring to a hearing.
Chaptzem - Great job!!!
Comment Credit ---This article posted by 
: January 30, 2007 2:15 AM
: January 30, 2007 2:15 AM
