Sen. Blumenthal honors Connecticut Marine from Waterford

In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., Wednesday "honored the heroism of U.S. Marine Justin Eldridge of Waterford, Conn.," according to a release.

 

 

The the text of the release from Blunenthal's office, unedited her, is belowe the video:

 

“No one in this body – other than I – have the privilege to know Justin Eldridge of Waterford, Conn. Justin was a true American hero, a patriot, a United States Marine who served our country in Afghanistan and who scarcely more than 48 hours ago took his own life at his home.

 

“I first came to know Justin when he formed a chapter of the Marine Corps League in Southeastern, Conn. He believed deeply in the Marine Corps, in service to his country, his family, and in the values and traditions and ethos of all of our great United States Marines, and men and women who wear the uniform. I will never forget my conversations with him at that Marine Corps League and then afterward by e-mail and phone.

 

“Even after he returned home from Afghanistan, Justin had a long fight ahead of him. He returned home with the signature wounds of [the Afghanistan] war, both traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress. And he worked for years to get the specialized treatment that he needed.

 

“He tried hard to be there for his family. According to his wife Joanna, his four children loved having him around. Joanna … was there for Justin by his side throughout his treatment and she never gave up, never relented, never surrendered. She was his full-time caregiver and Justin himself continued to give back. Joanna is a strong advocate for all veterans, as we should be, all of us.

 

“I cannot express in words how deeply sorry I am that that treatment evidently proved unsuccessful – perhaps not the result of the V.A. or its doctors or its hospital, [but] because we are only beginning to learn as a country and society how to confront post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury with the specialized diagnosis and care that these diseases demand.

 

“I want to take this occasion to encourage anyone who is suffering from post-traumatic stress or traumatic brain injury or any of the other wounds of war to reach out for help. The veterans crisis line is there to help you, anyone who needs that help can call 1-800-273-TALK.

 

“My thoughts and prayers are with Justin's wife Joanna and their four children, and all of Justin's family and friends, fellow Marines who grieve his loss at this difficult time.”

Senator Richard Blumenthal to hold hearing on Metro-North Railroad power failure

 

BRIDGEPORT - U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, (D-Conn. will act as chairman for a field hearing of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety and Security on the recent Metro-North power outage at 10 a.m. Oct. 28 at Bridgeport’s City Council Chambers, 45 Lyon Terrace, according to a release.

"The hearing will examine the causes of the outage, how to prevent such failures from reoccurring, and the economic impact of such a major service disruption," according to a release.

The hearing will be streamed live online at http://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/live, the release said.

 

"Among those testifying at the hearing include ConEdison President Craig Ivey, MTA Metro-North Railroad President Howard Permut, Connecticut Transportation Commissioner Jim Redeker, John Hartwell of the Connecticut Rail Commuter Council, Amtrak President and CEO Joseph Boardman, and Otto Lynch from the American Society of Civil Engineers and Joseph McGee of the Business Council of Fairfield County."
 U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., and U.S. Reps. Jim Himes, D-4 and Elizabeth Esty, D-5 also are to testify, the release said.

 

"Blumenthal has called the disruption unacceptable and inexcusable, and has demanded that New York-based utility ConEdison be held accountable for the lack of adequate contingency plans for such a power failure. He has joined Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) in calling on the federal Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability and the New York Public Service Commission to conduct an investigation into the cable failure. Blumenthal has also advocated for increased investment in rail and transportation infrastructure."

 

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