NORTH ANDOVER, MASS. (WHDH) - After it was announced that the family of a teenager who was killed in last year’s Merrimack Valley gas disaster had reached a settlement with Columbia Gas, elected officials and business leaders held a news conference to update economic recovery efforts, nearly 10 months since the explosions rocked Lawrence, North Andover, and Andover.
Officials rolled out a new marketing campaign dubbed “Rock the Register,” which hopes to get customers back into about 900 locally-owned stores that were forced to shut down operations when a string of explosions and fires on Sept. 13 injured 25 people, damaged dozens of homes and left thousands without gas service for months.
“Everyone was in survival mode,” said Kellee Twadelle, owner of Rose & Dove Specialty Gift Shop in North Andover. “You’re on a day-to-day basis of what do you need to do that day to get by.”
Businesses in the area may be opened again but customers have yet to return to the many small stores scattered across the area.
“They were closed for three months. Their customers established different buying habits and different spending habits,” said Derek Mitchell, of Lawrence Partnership. “Remember, most of the customers were also affected.”
Lawrence Mayor Dan Rivera also spoked in favor of Rock the Register, urging residents to shop in his city.
“Come to Lawrence and use your money in Lawrence,” Rivera said. “Go to the restaurants, got to the bodegas. It’s what we want people to do.”
State and local officials say they hope the campaign will bring businesses back to the way they were prior to the disaster.
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