Malloy Sends National Guard Chopper To NJ

Among continuing developments in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said he sent a National Guard helicopter, a UH-60 Black Hawk, Wednesday afternoon to New Jersey to assist in dealing with the devastating storm damage there.

The Democratic governor said that he had hoped to talk personally on the phone Wednesday with Republican New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie – with whom he has sparred periodically in the news media – but they missed each other during the day. However, he said their staffs connected and they worked out the arrangement for the helicopter, which has significant lifting capacity.

Malloy downplayed their past feuding when he was asked to describe the current state of his relationship with Christie. Malloy smiled broadly and said it was both “fine” and “transparent,” whatever that means.

Malloy also had hoped to talk with Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Wednesday, but they didn’t connect, either.

Also Wednesday:

–  Officials said that the storm-crippled Metro North commuter line will be 50-percent operational to New York City, starting Thursday morning. Trains will only run from Stamford to New York, and service from beyond Stamford will take longer to restore.

– Malloy also said at his afternoon briefing that 11 citizens– up from the three he had initially reported in his morning session with reporters — had suffered carbon monoxide poisoning or related problems because they had used combustion heaters during the power outage. At least three had to go to the hospital. He warned that if people use such heaters, they need to vent them properly.