The bungling Long Island politician who basked in the warmth of a Caribbean vacation while his constituents suffered through winter storm Nemo finally offered an apology yesterday.
Brookhaven Town Supervisor Ed Romaine said he regretted the comically inept response to the snow storm and shunted blame onto the town’s highway department.
Superintendent Michael Murphy was forced to resign after calling in sick for the entirety of the snowstorm with what he termed an “emergency toothache.”
Infuriated residents in large portions of the town didn’t see a single plow until several days after Nemo hit with many people unable to leave their homes.
“I want to say to the people of Brookhaven that I’m sorry that the storm happened and I’m particularly sorry that I wasn’t here when it occurred,” Romaine said. “I understand their frustration and their anger. Please accept my apologies.”
Appearing tanned and well rested after his Jamaican getaway, Romaine promised wide reaching snow removal reforms in the coming weeks.
While acknowledging that his absence during the chaos was unseemly, Romaine stressed that he and the board he heads do not have amy direct control over the highway department.
The embattled supervisor’s handlers tightly controlled yesterday’s news conference and refused to take questions from assembled media.
Coram resident Ken Tax was marooned in his home for several days before plows finally showed up this past Monday.
“The whole thing was just ridiculous,” he said, adding that he wasn’t willing to embrace Romaine’s mea culpable just yet. “if this is just another town apology them no, I don’t accept it.”