Hurricane Sandy

Deadline to Apply for FEMA, SBA Extended to May 1

Deadline extension applies for homeowner, renter and business registration with SBA

Residents impacted by Superstorm Sandy now have until May 1 to register for individual disaster assistance through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), according to a prepared statement from the governor's office.  The deadline extension also applies for homeowner, renter, and business registration with the Small Business Administration (SBA) for Disaster Loan Assistance. Businesses applying for SBA Economic Injury loans still have until July 31 to apply. The loans are for businesses that did not suffer any physical damage, but lost revenue in Sandy's aftermath. State and federal offiicials have urged all residents and businesses affected by the storm, whether it was through flooding, wind damage or loss of business  revenue, …

•  44 Comments
• Photos (4)

Flood Watch, Wind Advisory in Effect for Shore

No snow predicted in mid-week storm, however

It won't be a repeat of the 2010 post-Christmas blizzard, but a coastal storm will bring rain, high winds and the threat of flooding to the Shore area Wednesday into Thursday. A coastal flood watch was in effect for Monmouth and Ocean counties and a wind advisory stretched the entire length of the shoreline from Sandy Hook to Cape May. Rain was forecast to begin falling across the region by 1 p.m., forecasters with the National Weather Service office in Mount Holly predicted. Wind gusts were forecast to reach up to 40 m.p.h. during the afternoon Wednesday and up to an inch of rain was possible. Heavy rain is forecast to continue through Wednesday night into Thursday morning, with as much as two additional inches falling. Wind gusts could …

•  5 Comments
• Photos (2)

Hurricane Sandy

FEMA: We Offer Aid, Information for Sandy Victims

As residents remain anxious in the aftermath of Sandy, the agency says it is offering tips and information about mitigation.

Navigating her way through the piles of paperwork, through meetings with contractors and the near never-ending stream of advice coming at her from every direction is a new experience for Jacqueline Capestro. Then again, so was watching ocean water surge down the street and into her home. For the 22 years she’s lived there, Capestro had never once seen her Bradley Beach home flood. When she returned following Hurricane Sandy to assess the damage she found her floorboards buckled, the furniture destroyed, and a flood line on the wall three feet from the floor. After initial shock slowly shifted to resolve, Capestro was left without an answer to one very important question: What now? In Capestro’s case, and in the case of many New Jersey’s …

•  40 Comments
• Photos (1)

Hurricane Sandy

Information for Sandy-Battered Businesses at Monday Meeting

UPDATE: New location: White Sands, Point Beach

The Small Business Administration (SBA) and FEMA will explain how businesses damaged by Sandy should apply for financial assistance at a meeting on Monday at the White Sands. The Point Pleasant Chamber of Commerce and the Point Pleasant Beach Chamber of Commerce are welcoming business owners and managers from across Ocean and Monmouth counties to attend the session from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. Monday at the White Sands, 1205 Ocean Ave., Point Beach. The Point Pleasant Chamber on Saturday had announced in an email to all members that the meeting would be with SBA at the chamber office, 2810 Bridge Ave., Point Pleasant Borough. However, there was an announcement on the chamber's Facebook page on Sunday that the meeting would be at the White Sands…

•  1 Comment
• Photos (2)

Hurricane Sandy

HURRICANE SANDY: JCP&L Says it Learned From Its Mistakes

Stresses storm may knock out power for 7-10 days

  Jersey Central Power and Light (JCP&L) President Don Lynch says the company has learned from the mistakes it made from Hurricane Irene and is ready for Hurricane Sandy and the threat it poses to the state. The company took heat when Hurricane Irene left many New Jersey towns without power for days - and, in some cases, weeks. Many thought JCP&L's response was too slow. The biggest lesson learned is getting the information out to customers and municipalities as specifically, quickly and often as possible, Lynch said. The company wants its customers to know as much information as possible, he said. "Just know that Jersey Central will be working hard day and night - we've already started, should that storm hit shore here and cause outages …

•  40 Comments
• Photos (3)

Hurricane Irene

UPDATE: Over 60 Evacuated from Homes, Trailers Following Flooding

Manchester police respond to area as river floods

More than 60 homes and campers were evacuated late Sunday night into early Monday morning as flooding after Hurricane Irene continues to affect portions of the Toms River in Manchester. Manchester Police Chief Brian Klimakowski said that 13 residences were evacuated Sunday night in Cedar Glen, a neighborhood off of Ridgeway Road (Route 571) near Manchester's border with Toms River. Over 50 campers and mobile home occupants were then told to leave the the Surf and Stream campground early Monday morning. Flood waters at the campground, which is about 400 feet southeast from Cedar Glen on the opposite side of Route 571, rose to 3 feet in some sections, Klimakowski said. United Methodist Church in Whiting is sheltering nine evacuees, …

•  3 Comments
• Photos (7)
• Videos (1)

Hurricane Irene

Mobile Home Park Evacuated As River Rises

30 Homestead Run residents evacuated; shelter at Intermediate North reopened

A quickly-rising river near Homestead Run Mobile Home Park is causing an evacuation of 30 residents there, officials said. Emergency responders are searching homes in the evacuation area of the neighborhood, verifying homes are vacant or evacuating residents to Toms River Intermediate School North. The mobile home park has not had power since 11 p.m. Saturday, residents said. Homestead Run, off Route 70 and Fireside Boulevard, is near the northern branch of the Toms River. The river, which snakes alongside the development, quickly began rising to flood levels at around 8 p.m. tonight, officials said. By 8:30 p.m., an evacuation operation was already underway, officials said. The river there has been rising all day, gradually, but “in the …

• Photos (13)