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April 2019 Issue 59

Workshop Calendar  Click here to view training opportunities available. We will continue to update the schedule with dates and locations, so check in with us regularly. If you are interested in hosting a class, please email Shelly Desjardin at [email protected] .  Click Here to Register for Training Online Our mission is to foster a safe, efficient, environmentally sound transportation system by improving skills and knowledge of local transportation providers through training, technical assistance, and technology transfer.

In This Issue:

2019 Roadway Safety Poster Contest Winners Announced Warren's Words of Wisdom: Pad-Mounted—Primary and Secondary Voltages in a Box Innovation Station: CCM Chats: Todd Rolland, Director of Public Works for the Town of Somers Town Crier: South Windsor Public Works Crew Rescue Wedding Ring AAA Invites Towns to Tackle Distracted Driving CIRMA's Cyber Security Alert National Public Works Week: May 19-25, 2019 40th Annual CASHO Equipment and Technical Show: May 16, 2019

2019 Roadway Safety Poster Contest Winners Announced The T2 Center is happy to announce the winners of the 2019 Roadway Safety Poster Contest! Our three winners and three honorable mentions were invited to attend the Connecticut Work Zone Awareness Press Conference on April 8th. At the press conference, the children were presented with ribbons and gift baskets from Lieutenant Governor Susan Bysiewicz, to honor their artistic achievements and their contributions to Connecticut's Road Safety efforts.

Congratulations to our winners and thank you to everyone who participated!

Warren's Words of Wisdom: Pad-Mounted —Primary and Secondary Voltages in a Box by Warren Rogers, C.S.P.

Pad-mounted transformers come in all sizes and capacities, but there are certain things you should immediately know whenever you see them:

There is both high voltage (up to 23,000 volts) and secondary voltage (12/240/480 volts) inside. They are metal. All the electricity is coming and going underground. They don't like to be hit, run over, pushed, spray painted, made fun of, or otherwise abused.  If there is an accidental interaction between a padmount transformer and your plow or vehicle, stay in the vehicle, call 911, and keep people away from approaching your vehicle. To continue this article, click here .

CCM Chats: Todd Rolland, Director of Public Works of the Town of Somers The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities (CCM) sat down with Todd Rolland, the Director of Public Works for the Town of Somers, to chat about how Somers is using the Streetscan program. CCM and Streetscan have partnered to provide CCM-member towns and cities Smart City pavement inspection and management services that are fast and affordable. Streetscan's vans, equipped with innovative patented sensing technologies—acoustic, radar, and optical—can detect surface and subsurface roadway defects while driving in and without interrupting normal traffic flow. Watch the Video

South Windsor Public Works Crew Rescue Wedding Ring When a man accidentally dropped his wedding ring down a storm drain in South Windsor, he thought he'd never see it again. Married couple Kayla Mikkelson and Jose Encarnacion said they were walking along Deming Street in South Windsor outside the daycare where they work, when all of a sudden Encarnacion's wedding ring slipped off his finger. It fell into a catch basin. They did what they could to pull it out on their own, but it was too tough. They called police for help who connected them to the town's Public Works Department. A crew came out right away. "We shifted some guys around," said Vincent Stetson, Superintendent of Street Services. "They brought some pumps out." After an hour and a half, the drain was dry and the ring was found. A symbol of their love that was almost lost. Now it's one they said they'll cherish more than ever. To read the original article, click here .

AAA Invites Towns to Tackle Distracted Driving

April is National Distracted Driving Awareness month. AAA has created a new public service announcement (PSA) that dramatically and effectively compares distracted driving to drunk driving—and they are sharing the PSA with towns across Connecticut in a effort to raise awareness about this disturbing trend. The PSA, which urges motorists not to drive 'i ntexticated ', is just one aspect of AAA's campaign, which includes opportunities, information and other resources for town staff and public works employees to promote the public safety messaging. If your town or your department would like more information, contact Amy Parmenter, AAA Manager of Public and Government Affairs, Greater Hartford. You can contact Ms. Parmenter via email [email protected] or via telephone (860) 965-6161.

If you want to take the Don’t Drive Intexticated pledge, click here .

CIRMA's Cyber Security Alert BEC Scams Evolving to Target Direct Deposit Accounts via Email

Malicious actors are evolving Business Email Compromise (BEC) scams to target direct deposit accounts through emailed change requests sent to Human Resources or Finance departments. The Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC) has received multiple reports of state, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) governments and private sector entities receiving a small number of spoofed emails. Of note, a significant majority of the employees who had their accounts spoofed were executive-level staff members.

This new variant utilizes a similar method of coercing targets to send money to the malicious actor as the previous BEC W-2 variant, which resulted in a significant data or financial losses for SLTT governments or employees. Further information about the BEC scam, including Purchase Order, Wire Transfer/Financial Theft, and W-2 variants, is available in the MS-ISAC Security Primer. For more information, click here .

National Public Works Week: May 19-25, 2019

APWA is proud to announce "It Starts Here" as the theme for the 2019 National Public Works Week. This theme represents the many facets of modern civilization that grow out of the efforts put forth by the public works professionals across North America. What starts here? Infrastructure starts with public works... Growth and Innovation starts with public works... Security starts with public works... Healthy Communities start with public works... The bottom line is that citizens' quality of life starts with public works.

It's not too early to start planning how your agency can highlight what you do for your community and it's residents. Did you participate in last year's "Fill a Public Works Truck Food Drive?" If you did, THANK YOU! If you didn't participate last year, please consider participating this year. It is a great way to give back to your community and bring positive attention to your agency.

For more information on the "Fill a Public Works Truck Food Drive," click here . To get resources and order items for National Public Works Week from APWA, click here . For information on how to plan a "Public Works Family Appreciation Day," click here

40th Annual CASHO Equipment and Technical Show: May 16, 2019

CASHO is committed to keeping our industry on the cutting edge. Recognizing that state and municipal budget cuts have been severe in recent years, it is essential that funds provided are utilized as efficiently as possible. With your support, the 2019 CASHO Equipment and Technical Show is recognized as the show that public works and municipal officials "can't afford to miss." The Equipment and Technical show is unique and varied in nature and serves as a valuable educational tool to all in the public sector. Sign your crew up today and come visit the onsite T2 Center representatives who will be running the education stations! Click here for more information about this event.

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If you have any ideas or suggestions for future Connecticut Crossroads topics, please feel free to email the designer Regina Hackett at [email protected]