Roundup: New deputy director named at laboratory

Brookhaven National Laboratory has named an experimental physicist to help develop the facility’s future research programs.

Robert Tribble, who will be the Upton lab’s deputy director for science and technology, is one of the top nuclear scientists in the United States, laboratory officials said in a news release. He is to join the lab on Sunday.

“We’re very excited to have Bob Tribble join Brookhaven Lab in a key leadership role,” laboratory director Doon Gibbs said in a statement. “His unique experience and insight into science in this country and around the world will be a great asset as we chart our plans for future research programs.”

Tribble had been a distinguished professor of physics and astronomy at Texas A&M University and director of its Cyclotron Institute and the Nuclear Solutions Institute.

Brookhaven Lab, operated by the federal Department of Energy, conducts research on issues such as climate change, sustainable energy and ecosystems, often through the use of the lab’s two accelerator facilities, the National Synchrotron Light Source II and the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider. — CARL MACGOWAN

BETHPAGE

Disaster prep training on Saturday

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's office will host a training seminar in Bethpage on Saturday to prepare Nassau County residents for the next disaster.

The Citizens Preparedness Corps Training Program will take place at 10 a.m. at Bethpage High School. Cuomo launched the program earlier this month at Farmingdale State College with the goal of training 100,000 New Yorkers as “first-responders.”

“Over the past three years we have experienced several significant natural disasters, and we need to make sure our communities and citizens are safe, prepared and trained to respond to these often cataclysmic events,” Cuomo said in a statement Tuesday.

The 90-minute training session, which includes advice on developing a family emergency plan, following proper evacuation routes and ensuring that smoke detectors and fire extinguishers work, will be led by members of the New York National Guard.

Attendees will receive a kit of supplies that can be used in the aftermath of a disaster, including a first-aid kit, pocket radio, plastic drop cloth, flashlight and a face mask.

Seminar participants must register in advance by visiting www.prepare.ny.gov. Space is limited. — ROBERT BRODSKY

BABYLON TOWN

Committees to look at emergency prep

The town will create two new committees to oversee emergency planning — a response to superstorm Sandy and a step toward improved readiness for future emergencies, officials said Wednesday.

An Emergency Management Committee will focus on ways to maintain key government functions during a storm or hacking of town computer systems, town spokesman Kevin Bonner said. “Pools could shut down for a week,” he said. “But, for example, what if we got hit by a hurricane during tax time in January and power was out for a week?”

The director of information technology, comptroller, clerk, assessor, town attorney and tax receiver will be on that committee, Bonner said.

The second committee, composed of all department heads and Gil Hans, the town’s director of emergency preparedness, will review existing emergency plans for each department, Bonner said.

The town was able to maintain all “core functions” during Sandy, but there were some scares, he said. An aging radio system used to communicate with Department of Public Works trucks, workers in the field and public safety personnel almost failed, Bonner said. That system has since been replaced. — NICHOLAS SPANGLER

HUNTINGTON

Town tulip festival planned for May 4

A date for the 2014 Huntington Tulip Festival has been set, a sign that spring is within reach.

The free family-oriented festival will take place May 4 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Huntington’s Heckscher Park. It will feature thousands of tulips, activity booths for children and live entertainment.

Tulip bulbs in several varieties are planted in December with the festival timed for peak bloom.

“The festival is a load of fun, with lots of activities for the kids and a great place to take keepsake photographs,” town board member Mark Cuthbertson, founder of the festival, said.

The event, hosted by the town and Astoria Federal Savings, also will feature a photo contest, open to any photographer, amateur or professional. All entries must be unmounted, 8” X 10” photographic color prints. A maximum of two entries per photographer will be accepted. All entries must be postmarked or received by July 31.

For more information on the festival and photo contest, call 631-351-3099 or go to the Town of Huntington’s website at HuntingtonNY.gov, click on the “Parks and Recreation” tab, then “Cultural Affairs” and then “Tulip Festival.” — DEBORAH S. MORRIS

BABYLON TOWN

State grant to fund town vans for seniors

Two vans for town senior centers, fences at Geiger Lake Memorial Park and an armed forces statue in Copiague are among the projects that will be funded through a $250,000 state Dormitory Authority grant.

The vans — estimated at $114,000 for both — are particularly welcome, town spokesman Kevin Bonner said. “All four of our senior centers are very active, and a lot of seniors rely on us for rides to the centers, daily trips to the grocery store, the dollar store and field trips.”

The authority is a public benefit corporation founded to finance construction of dormitories in state teachers’ colleges and now serves a broader array of agencies and nonprofit institutions. — NICHOLAS SPANGLER

UPPER BROOKVILLE

Board OKs law to exceed state tax cap

The village board Tuesday night passed a law to allow the municipality to exceed the state’s tax cap if necessary.

The trustees took the action as a precaution because the budget for the fiscal year beginning in June is still being prepared and village officials don’t know yet if the tax levy increase will exceed the state limit. — BILL BLEYER