Wind, rain, cause damage in Aberdeen

Portions of Route 35 south near Cliffwood Avenue in Aberdeen Township were blocked off on Saturday and Sunday due to minor flooding as a result of the coastal storm. JACQUELINE HLAVENKA ABERDEEN— Minor flooding, beach erosion and water treatment problems were effects of the weekend rain and windstorm that hit Aberdeen Township’s Raritan Bay coastline on March 13-15.

Residents in Cliffwood and the Cliffwood Beach sections of town were advised to boil water prior to drinking on March 14 as a result of the heavy rains that impacted the Middlesex Water Co.’s water treatment plant. The utility company serves northern portions of the township that lie on the border of Middlesex and Monmouth counties.

“We did a Code Red reverse 911 to notify our residents, and that got out early afternoon Sunday,” said Aberdeen Mayor Fred Tagliarini on Monday.

The township advised residents to boil water for a period of one minute before using over the next 48 hours for the following: drinking, cooking or baking, making ice cubes, taking medication, brushing teeth, washing food, mixing baby formula or food, mixing juices or drinks, feeding pets, and all other consumption.

Water does not have to be boiled for showering, washing dishes or clothes. While the Middlesex Water Co. awaits the results of tests taken on its water supply, the company is recommending that customers boil all water used for consumption purposes, according to a statement from the township.

“Nothing has changed, so it will still be in effect for today and tomorrow,” Tagliarini said on Monday. “Whether that’s continued or not, we will have to see when they [Middlesex Water Co.] get their samples back.”

In addition to water treatment advisories, road closures and flooding affected the township. The New Jersey Department of Transportation (DOT) closed portions of Route 35 from Cliffwood Avenue to County Road due to minor flooding, according to Utility Supervisor Robert Brady of the township Department of Public Works. No closures on Route 34 were reported, he said.

Flooding, erosion and dune damage also occurred on Lakeshore Drive near the Cliffwood Beach coastline. Both Brady and Township Administrator Joseph Criscuolo are assessing the damage and are considering seeking grant money for repairs.

“We did some review yesterday and we are hoping to hear potentially, and I’ve been in touch with our engineer; we are waiting to hear from FEMA [Federal Emergency ManagementAgency] to see if we are going to get any federal funds,” Criscuolo said on Monday morning.

Power outages across the township were sporadic but widespread, Tagliarini explained.

“Three or four sections of Strathmore were affected, but it wasn’t the entire section,” he said. “There were sporadic outages all over the township, and we did have a situation where there was one transformer outage that effected the ‘O’and the ‘F’sections, and that power was restored at approximately 8 p.m. [Sunday] evening.”

According to the township Department of Public Works, electricity was to be restored by Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L) by Tuesday.

“We did have some outages in a couple of our sections, but the power is back on now, and there are a couple of small, little pockets they [JCP&L] are still working on,” Brady said.

In Monmouth County, approximately 25,000 JCP&L customers remain without electricity, Glen Mason, Office of Emergency Management Coordinator said on Monday.

“JCP&L brought extra crews in from Ohio and Pennsylvania,” said Mason. “They expect to have power restored tomorrow.”

Mason, having just returned from inspecting Atlantic Highlands and Union Beach, said the two municipalities were severely impacted. Although preliminary damage assessments have yet to come in, he anticipates costly repairs.

“The county workers are out clearing the roads. There was a lot of debris damage,” Mason said. “All of the workers at the state, county and local levels have been doing a great job. We’re thankful no one got hurt.”

Other Bayshore towns were not hit as hard as Aberdeen. In Matawan, Borough AdministratorWilliamGarofalo said some minor flooding occurred on Matawan Avenue and Ravine Drive, but the waters receded on Sunday.

“We had one area with power outages from Saturday into Sunday, but the power has been restored,” Garofalo said. “We are in good shape.”

Off Route 36 in Hazlet Township, flooding occurred on Union Avenue, township officials said. The street is near the 260-acre Natco Lake.

“The only place we had to put a barricade was Union Avenue, and that’s pretty much not out of the ordinary,” said Township Administrator Michael Muscillo. “Any place we normally have problems with, didn’t have any problems.”

As a result of the severe weather conditions, Gov. Chris Christie signed an executive order and declared a state of emergency on March 14.

The executive order broadens powers of the New Jersey State Police to activate parts of the State Emergency Operations Plan, including traffic control, limiting access to impacted areas, and issuing evacuation orders if needed, according to a press statement from the governor’s office.

For more information, periodic updates may be obtained on the Aberdeen Township website at www.aberdeennj.org or by calling 732-566-2054.