| Hurricane Sandy Updates |
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To receive warnings, alerts and informational messages from the Police Department, sign up for Nixle alerts at www.nixle.com. As a result of the storm, the deadline for making quarterly property tax payments has been extended to Friday, November 16th at 4:00pm. (Current Pertinent Information - Originally Posted Wednesday, 11/14)
FOR PREVIOUS HURRICANE SANDY POSTINGS: PLEASE CLICK "READ MORE" BELOW.
(Saturday, 11/10)
(Friday, 11/9)
(Thursday, 11/8)
(Wednesday, 11/7)
(Tuesday, 11/6)
(Monday, 11/5)
(Sunday, 11/4)
(Saturday, 11/3) We received the following information today from JCP&L regarding the status of their efforts to restore electrical service to the residents and businesses in Montville Township:
We are thankful for donations by citizens and local restaurants businesses of food for those affected by the storm. If you would like to make such a donation, please coordinate delivery by calling the Emergency Operations Center at (973) 257-4110 or (973) 257-4300. (Friday, 11/2) Power Restoration: According to a press release from JCP&L, electrical service has been restored to 40% of their customers who were affected by Hurricane Sandy Although we have seen some power restoration throughout some areas of Montville Township, estimates from JCP&L are indicating that the majority of service restoration will be completed by November 7, 2012 with customers in the hardest hit areas the following week. Estimated restoration dates for specific streets are not yet available but we are hoping for this information soon. Do not call the police about electrical outages. They cannot do anything to restore your power and do not have any information about when JCP&L will be be working in your neighborhood. Do not call 9-1-1 except in case of real emergency. Other calls can tie up the phone lines and possibly delay response to life-threatening situation. Residents should be mindful that JCP&L is responsible for electric service up to the point where your service begins on your home. If your electrical service has been affected, you need to have the damage repaired by a licensed electrician. This must be taken care of before power can be restored at your home. Shelter: The comfort centers that have been open are being consolidated to Montville Township High School, 100 Horseneck Road. Beginning at 3:00 PM today, residents will have access to men's and women's shower facilities, heat, electricity, and overnight accommodations, if needed. If you anticipate spending the night at the shelter, please bring a sleeping bag, pillows, and any other items of comfort - cots will be available. Garbage Collection: Garbage collection scheduled for today (Section 2) was begun; however, the garbage trucks experienced challenges getting around the Township. If you normally receive garbage collection on Friday but your garbage was not collected today, please pull your cans in from the street and place them out again for collection tomorrow, Saturday, November 3, 2012. The Township's contractor and the Township are making every effort to collect garbage. The Montville Township Health Department has canceled the SMAC health clinic scheduled for Saturday, November 3, 2012. (Thursday, 11/1) Public Showers - Showers for both men and women will be available at Montville Township High School, today, from 3:00 PM to 10:00 PM. The men's and women's locker rooms are located to the right when entering the High School from the front doors. Comfort Shelters remain open as described below on the Tuesday, 10/31 update. There has been some restoration of power in sporadic areas within Montville Township; however, residents should remain prepared for long term outages. We do not have any specific information, at this time, regarding total restoration. (Wednesday, 10/31) Garbage collection will take place as scheduled; Section I - Thursday, November 1, 2012 and Section II - Friday, November 2, 2012. Due to the severe wide-spread damage caused by Hurricane Sandy throughout New Jersey, JCP&L has been attempting to complete their overall evaluation of their utility infrastructure. Montville Township's electrical substations have been significantly damaged. Currently, JCP&L is working to bring these substations back online. Additionally, the Township has also experienced wide spread electrical infrastructure damage to transformers, power lines, and utility poles. The damage to the regions electrical delivery infrastructure is severe and may be out for some time. Resident should be prepared for long term power outages, potentially 7 to 10 days or longer. As the temperature begins to drop, residents should be mindful regarding the use of generators (ensure the exhaust is away from windows and generators are placed outdoors). Additionally, do not heat your home with your gas stove and make sure that fire detectors have batteries that have been recently changed. (Tuesday, 10/31) Although the weather is expected to continue clearing tomorrow and more streets throughout town are being cleared, there are still many trees, poles and live electrical wires in roadways and yards throughout the township. You are urged to stay off the roads to allow emergency services and utility personnel to continue to do their jobs in a safe environment. Remember also that due to the widespread power outages, most stores, gas stations and other destinations are still closed. If you must drive, please do so with extreme caution as most traffic lights are still not working. Be safe! The Montville Police Department will be opening comfort stations at the local firehouses for your convenience. The buildings are equipped with generators and are capable of providing charging for electronic equipment. The stations are located at:
A pet-friendly comfort station will be available at Cedar Hill School, 46 Pine Brook Road, Towaco. Residents can stay and charge their devices as well as relax with their pets. All of these stations will be available today, October 30th, after 2:00pm. The shelter at the High School has been closed. All Montville Township schools will be closed tomorrow, Wednesday, October 30th. (Monday, 10/29) A local State of Emergency has been declared for Montville Township. Access to roads throughout the Township is restricted to emergency services personnel. Significant portions of the township are without electrical service and many streets are blocked by fallen trees, utility poles and wires. Please stay safe in your homes. Do not call 9-1-1 except in case of real emergency. Other calls can tie up the phone lines and possibly delay response to life-threatening situation. Do not call the police about electrical outages. They cannot do anything to restore your power and do not have any information about when JCP&L will be be working in your neighborhood. A temporary emergency shelter with limited sleeping facilities has been opened at the High School. Access to the shelter will be limited to those whose homes are not habitable due to physical damage related to the storm. Montville Township opened its Emergency Operations Center (EOC) at 8:00 pm, Monday, October 29th. It is staffed by representatives of all of our emergency services. Please continue to call 9-1-1 to report any emergency. EOC personnel are available to coordinate response to storm-related situations throughout the township and answer non-emergency, storm-related questions. Please direct your calls to the appropriate personnel at the following numbers:
In the event of a power outage Do not call 9-1-1, the Police Department or the EOC for power outages. The people there cannot do anything to resolve power outages and your call could delay their response to true emergencies. For the safety of their workers, JCP&L has pulled their crews off of restoration work due to the high winds we are experiencing. If you experience a power outage, you should not expect the problem to be resolved until after the storm passes and the crews can resume work. Garbage collection for Section 2, scheduled for Tuesday, October 30, 2012 has been canceled. The next garbage collection for Section 2 will be Friday, November 2, 2012. Moving vehicles: Residents of areas that were impacted by flooding during the storms associated with Hurricane Irene are invited to move any vehicles from flood prone areas to the Woodmont Elementary School parking lot on Woodmont Road. If you choose to move a vehicle to Woodmont School, it MUST be removed prior to school resuming. (Sunday, 10/28) The Montville Township Public Schools will be closed on Monday, October 29th and Tuesday, October 30th. The M.E.D.L.C. program will also be closed on Monday. M.E.D.L.C. may also close on Tuesday if the state of emergency continues until then. The Township Office of Emergency Management has issued the following alert regarding traffic and parking in Pine Brook: The impending weather conditions impose an imminent hazard to traffic and emergency response. In order to maintain transportation rights-of-way that allow emergency traffic to flow, the Montville Police will utilize predetermined detour routes around the flood-prone areas of Changebridge Road, should it become necessary. Parking on the following streets will be prohibited beginning at 9:00am on Monday October 29, 2012 until further notice: The Police Department and Office of Emergency Management are making use of the Nixle Connect service to broadcast alert messages to interested citizens. Nixle Connect is a free service that allows public safety agencies to send warnings, alerts and informational messages via text message, e-mail, mobile app or your web browser. You can sign up by texting your zip code to 888777 or by accessing Nixle's website at www.nixle.com. Additional details are available in Nixle's "Why Nixle for Citizens" borchure. We have confirmed with Suburban Disposal, Inc., the township's solid waste collection contractor, that they intend to collect garbage and recycling this week according to their normal schedule. If weather conditions make that impossible, there will be a notification posted here. (Saturday, 10/27) Governor Chris Christie has issued an Executive Order declaring a State of Emergency in New Jersey in preparation for the coming storm. In coordination with the state Department of Environmental Protection, the operators of several reservoirs, including the Boonton Reservoir, have been releasing water since Friday to reduce the possibility of flooding as a result of the expected heavy rains. The Township's Department of Public Works has placed a supply of sandbags, along with a truckload of sand at the parking lot of Manchester Park (33A Buckingham Circle, Pine Brook). Township residents in areas prone to flooding should feel free to take advantage of these supplies to help minimize the damage of potential flooding. (Friday, 10/26) The Township of Montville, including the Police Department, Office of Emergency Management, Fire Departments, First Aid Squad and Department of Public Works have begun to prepare for the storm. Current forecast models indicate Sandy may make landfall on the eastern seaboard, between Delaware and Maine. At this time, the New Jersey is in the center of the projected path. Hurricanes often result in extensive damage to power lines and poles and may result in power outages that can last for days. At times, Montville Township experiences power failures during regular storms, so residents should be prepared for large scale power outages. If your power should go out, please call the JCP&L Outage Reporting Line at (888) 544-4877. Please do not call 9-1-1 or the Police Department for power outages as they can do nothing about outages and you may delay their ability to respond to true emergencies. Remember, the 9-1-1 system is for emergencies only! For general inquiries, information or to report property damage, contact the Police Department at 973-257-4300. If you sustain property damage and need a police report, or are in need of a 'pump out' due to flooding, please refrain from contacting the Police Department and Fire Departments during the height of the storm. Specific Areas of Concern Preparedness Additional information on preparedness can be found through the State of New Jersey's Office of Emergency Management and the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA): New Jersey OEM: Plan and Prepare FEMA - Are You Ready - Hurricanes
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| Last Updated ( Wednesday, 26 December 2012 ) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||