While baseball, swimming and barbecues are signs of summer in Floral Park, this past week they were also signs of remembrance and tribute. Along with Deputy Mayor Kevin Greene and Trustees Rhatigan and Tweedy, I attended the opening of the Bobby Regan Softball Tournament at our recreation center in memory of our fallen NYFD lieutenant. Also over the weekend, we enjoyed hamburgers, hot dogs and cold drinks when our Floral Park Fire Department sponsored the Third Annual Keith Fairben Memorial Old Fashioned Fire Tournament. Our drill team, the Doodlebugs, took fourth place overall against stiff competition, but more importantly, they again heralded the memory of one of their and our fallen heroes. The annual Pool Director's Dance was held Friday evening. As twilight dissipated into a spectacular summer night, our residents happily gathered about the quiet pool waters motionlessly resting in a strange but beautiful contrast to the noisy splashiness of the afternoon. While the number of attendees was a little less than some previous years, those present enjoyed the balmy weather, music and the joyous company of friends and neighbors. Pool Director Tom Dillon and his staff set the mood for this easygoing entry into a relaxing Floral Park weekend.

There are, however, more ominous signs of summer. Thunderstorms are most likely to develop on these hot, humid summer days and while lightning is fascinating to watch, it is extremely dangerous. Few people really understand the dangers of lightning and do not act promptly enough to protect their lives and those of others in an electrical storm. Recently, I witnessed a bolt of lightning strike a pole directly adjacent to the Covert Avenue railroad tracks, temporarily igniting it as it was engulfed in a column of black smoke that required the response of our police and fire departments and a redirecting of traffic.

Lightning is capricious, random, unpredictable and potentially deadly. Recognizing a high-risk situation and moving to a low-risk location is key in reducing the risk of being struck by lightning. Approximately 300 people a year in the United States are struck by lightning, more than a few of them fatally. During the summer, people naturally take advantage of the warmer weather to enjoy the activities of boating, swimming, bicycling, golfing, jogging, camping, hiking and working outdoors. While these are all healthy and wholesome activities, they also put us at a greater risk during an approaching thunderstorm.

Weather experts tell us to use what they call the 30-30 rule when visibility is good and there is nothing obstructing your view. When you see lightning, court the time you hear the thunder. If that time is 30 seconds or less, the thunderstorm is within six miles of you and is dangerous. Seek shelter immediately. Where organized sport activities are taking place, it is wise for coaches, umpires and referees to stop the activities sooner rather than later and have a plan to keep participants and spectators safe from lightning. The threat of lightning continues much longer than people realize. Wait at least 30 minutes after the last clap of thunder before leaving shelter and don't be fooled by sunshine or a blue sky!

Good shelters are substantial buildings or a fully enclosed metal vehicle. Once inside, people should stay away from windows and doors and avoid contact with anything that conducts electricity. Certainly do not talk on phones with cords.

Many have already heard of these safety tips but they are worth repeating. Invested with the proper information and a little common sense, we can greatly reduce this and other liabilities of our summer months.

The reconstruction of beautiful Magnolia Avenue continues apace as we anticipate a happy conclusion. The oversight and coordination by village engineer Ed Palmer has paid enormous dividends in terms of the quality of workmanship and the timeliness of the project. Ed designed the road, the drainage and expedited the design throughout the entire undertaking. This supervision has no doubt resulted in the project coming in on schedule and on budget. Last week, the mixing of the recycled road with a state-of-the-art binding material formed the substrate of the new road. The next step will be the installing and rolling of new asphalt. Finally, striping, signing and the remaining sod and sidewalks will be installed.

In connection with this project, work is also being done on Concord Street, including new curbs, aprons and road surfaces that will benefit from direct storm sewer piping. This decision is proving farsighted in preventing severe ponding conditions that the late spring and early summer downpours would have undoubtedly created.

Overlays are different from reconstruction in that they target roads that are not beyond repair and allow the village to resurface roads at a much lower cost. King Street, between Plainfield Avenue and Flower Avenue, and Emerson Avenue, between Lowell and Bryant Avenues, have just been completed. Our Department of Public Works is in the process of evaluating and creating a new list of potential roads for overlay to be completed this summer.

Village sidewalks, when kept in good repair, serve to enhance our residential and commercial area while simultaneously providing safe and pleasing walkways. The 2006 sidewalk program is under way; Clover Avenue and Maple Avenue in the west end of the village, followed by Elm Avenue and Walnut Avenue, will be inspected for repair. While an inconvenience for residents, experience has demonstrated that the sidewalk program is vital in maintaining the value of a homeowner's property and our community. Public Works has also begun to re-stripe traffic lines in the west end and this will continue all summer throughout the entire village.

The mechanical breakdown of two sweepers has put us a little behind schedule in sweeping 37 miles of roadway in the village. All three street sweepers are now up and running and we hope to catch up shortly. Each street in the village is scheduled to be swept once a week. In areas in the business section, around the churches and the Long Island Rail Road station, sweepers are out before cars arrive. We ask residents and business owners for their cooperation and assistance in keeping our streets clean by not sweeping dirt or grass cuttings into the street. Please remember that the responsibility of a clean village is shared by all. Be sure to deposit litter in the receptacles provided throughout the business areas. There are 75 of these receptacles throughout the village. These receptacles are not to be used as garbage cans by either merchants or tenants.

There is a billboard in the village with a quote from Abraham Lincoln that reads, "I like to see a man proud of the community in which he lives."