Monday, October 29, 2012
Action means federal agencies can assist state and local emergency workers as they respond to Hurricane Sandy.
President Obama declared a state of emergency in New Jersey late Sunday night. Obama ordered federal aid be appropriated to supplement state aid and local response efforts due to the emergency conditions that exist in the state due to Hurricane Sandy. The declaration authorizes the federal Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate with state and local emergency responders in the state to assist residents affected by Sandy. Governor Christie declared a state of emergency in New Jersey on Saturday. Obama toured parts of Wayne and Paterson last year at Congressman Bill Pascrell Jr.’s request, a few days after Tropical Storm Irene caused some of the worst flooding the area in the past century. …
Friday, October 26, 2012
Floodgates on the Pompton Lake dam will open early in anticipation of storm.
The floodgates on the Pompton Lakes dam will be manually opened Saturday in anticipation of Hurricane Sandy in an effort to relieve possible downstream flooding for residents who live below the dam. The state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) issued a press release on the decision Friday night. “New Jersey’s reservoirs are designed to provide water, not for flood control,” DEP Commissioner Martin said in a statement. “But given the situation, we decided we needed to get as much water out of the reservoir systems as possible, creating void space for runoff from the storm.” The DEP will manually open the gates and keep them open to drain five feet of water from the lake. This should allow the water to safely pass through …
New equipment, more lead time means emergency services personnel will have a better chance of evacuating residents should they need to be taken out of flooded areas.
Town officials insist they are better prepared for another serious flood should Hurricane Sandy create a situation similar to the one Tropical Storm Irene did last year. Residents criticized officials last year for not doing enough to help them and for not setting up a shelter in a timely manner. "They'd better be on their game this year after what happened last year," said Mark Hibbert as he loaded groceries into his car at Stop 'n' Shop Friday night. "We're doing everyhing we can to prepare for this storm. They should too." A shelter will be created at Kilroy Park and be ready to use should residents become displayed and have nowhere to stay. “As soon as we know who needs to be sheltered, they’ll be placed there,” said Sandy Galacio, …
Friday, August 3, 2012
Ken Doreumus has been trying to rebuild his two homes for months as he deals with government officials, his insurance company and his bank.
A few concrete bricks are all that remain of Ken Doremus’ house. Doremus actually owns two homes on Riverlawn Drive. He was forced to demolish one of them because of the 7 1/2 feet of water Tropical Storm Irene brought to the flood-prone neighborhood in 2011. “With flooding, you lose everything,” Doremus said. Doremus lives in the Mountain View section of town, one area of town Irene hit particualy hard. He paid a combined $85,000 for both properties in 2006. Doremus has been stuck in unending circle of paperwork and phone calls. For much of that time Doremus, a network administrator for Merk Pharmaceuticals, has been fighting with his insurance company and his bank over the fate of his two properties. He’s experienced three floods since …
Thursday, August 2, 2012
State's Office of Emergency Management would gain control from DEP under proposed legislation.
A state legislator is working to alleviate some of the flooding in the Passaic River Flood Basin. Assemblyman Scott Rumana (District 40) introduced legislation that would change who decides when the floodgates on the Pompton Lake dam can be opened. The legislation that would authorize the Office of Emergency Management (OEM) to order the water level of any reservoir to be lowered up to five feet prior to a “severe weather event.” “It’s not an overall solution to the problem but it’s one of those things we can do in the short term to take the edge off for people living in the flood plain,” Rumana said. The event must be forecast to deposit three or more inches of rain in a day. The OEM would also need to determine that such a move would be…
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Misallocation of funds the result of mistakes, confusion, and fraud. Tropical Storm Irene caused widespread damage in Wayne and North Jersey.
Nearly one in five New Jersey households that received emergency food stamps after Tropical Storm Irene blanketed North Jersey last Summer shouldn't have received them, a report on Time.com states. The Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program provides food for needy residents during disasters. The state implemented the program for the first time last year. The problem arose when reportedly thousands of people who were not eligible rushed to receive aid the program offers. Irene caused widespread damage throughout North Jersey. The storm caused record flooding in Wayne and surrounding towns. People were without power for days, their homes destroyed. Businesses closed down as a result of Irene and Tropical Storm Lee, which hit a …
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4:52 pm on Wednesday, May 29, 2013
The problem is not the Pompton Lakes Dam. the problem is further upstream - the much larger Wanaque Reservoir. This reservoir was at 100% capacity when Huricane Irene hit, as well as during 3 other major storms in 2011 that cacuse serious flood damage that year. Common sense dictates you draw down a reservoir prior to a storm to help hold back flood waters. Instead in NJ the Wanaque South and Two… more ›