Raagini Indian Bistro, a new restaurant to be located in Shawsheen Plaza is scheduled to open when the kids go back to school, according to owner and manager Jaspreet Singh. It will be located in the unit in Shawsheen Plaza formerly occupied by Cardsmart.

The Board of Selectmen approved a liquor license for Andover Foods, Inc.,dba Raagini Indian Bistro on May 21.

The restaurant will be operated as a family affair, with Singh’s father as the chef, an uncle also in the kitchen, and a cousin as the host, he explained.

Singh’s extended family owns a number of restaurants including Jewel of India in Newburyport and 

“Our customers, many from Andover, always wanted us to open up an Indian restaurant in town,” he explained.

Raagini’s Bistro will be a little more upscale with daily lunch buffets, Singh said. The menu will include traditional Tandoori dishes and some healthy choices, as well as other Indian specialities.

Construction is scheduled to begin in a few weeks, he said.

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Fire Chief Michael Mansfield said the recent rainfall has certainly made fire conditions safer but several more inches are needed before this rainfall dries up in order to avoid a possible rash of forest fires this summer.

“The significant rain that we had is very welcome. But we’re still below our averages,” said Mansfield.

The lack of a snow pack this year combined with dry weather has made the possibility for wildfires much greater in the coming months. The hurricane and October snowstorm also provided increased amounts of dead branches on the forest floor, making more fuel for wildfires.

Open burning ends on May 1 but residents may be able to burn at times this week with the help of the recent rain. Check with theFire Department before burning to ensure burning is allowed that day.

But unless several more inches of rainfall come before this rain dries up, it will do nothing to quell the larger issue of a dry summer, and a possible rash of brush and forest fires.

Mansfield said this rain can be dried up with several hot days in a row and bring back dry conditions. High air temperatures, low humidity and high wind are the three factors that will exacerbate the dry conditions caused by a lack of rainfall.

The chief said that if the region does not receive the rainfall it needs within the late spring and early summer, area residents can expect the danger of significant wildfires this summer.

“This [the recent rainfall] certainly helps but we’re not anywhere out of the woods so to speak,” said Mansfield.

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The fire chief, among many others, has been been saying

we need more rain, and it looks like we’re getting just that.

The 

Those of you who have been around long enough know that the areas most vulnerable to flooding include Route 28 and Route 133, Route 28 at Shawsheen Plaza, Central Street at Andover Street, South Main Street at the North Reading line, Balmoral Street, Riverina Road. Roads that sit in lower elevations near the Shawsheen River are susceptible to flooding as well.

Take extra caution while driving around the area, and don’t be a hero — avoid driving on flooded roads or extra deep puddles. And, while it seems obvious, safety officials are finding they still need to remind motorists that they should never attempt to drive past a road block at a flooded road or intersection.

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Andover may see 2 to 4 inches of snow over the weekend, according to the National Weather Service.

NWS has issued a Hazardous Weather Outlook for the area with snow showers expected Friday night and steady snow on Saturday. The steady snow should taper off by 5 p.m. Saturday and then snow showers are expected Saturday night.

The snowy conditions will be joined by fog and winds that may exceed 20 mph.

NWS said there is a “moderate to high probability that winter weather advisorires will be needed for a portion of southern New England.”

The heaviest snowfall should hit southeastern Massachusetts, but NWS warned that a shift in the storm track could result in changes in the type of precipitation and amount.

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