Monday, February 4, 2013
Constant stress, confusion bring on relentless fatigue for many
"Oh, a storm is threatening My very life today If I don't get some shelter Oh yeah, I'm gonna fade away" - from "Gimme Shelter" by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards It's been over three months since Superstorm Sandy roared into the Jersey coastline, changing landscapes and lives forever. At first, some people were optimistic the mess could be turned around in a relatively short period of time. Now we know better. Now the sickening realization that things will never be the same has sunk in. Township Council President James J. Byrnes had it right when he said at a recent council meeting that storm fatigue had set in. I've got it and so do too many other people. I'm tired of acronyms like FEMA, ICC, ABFEs, SBA. I'm tired of all the things I've…
Friday, January 25, 2013
State Park System officials hoping to reopen entire park by summer
Nearly three months after Superstorm Sandy swamped Island Beach State Park, sections of the park are now open to the public, free of charge. “This partial reopening of Island Beach State Park is an important benchmark in the state’s recovery from Sandy,” Gov. Chris Christie said. “While there is still much work to be done, we know that having even partial access to the park is important to residents and visitors and we are thrilled to welcome them back.” Ocean Bathing Area 1 - four miles south of the park entrance - is now open for walking, four-wheel drive access and sport fishing. Four-wheel drive vehicles with park-issued permits can enter the beach at Ocean Bathing Area 1 or at Gillikin’s Road, which is 1.2 miles north of Ocean Bathing…
Sunday, January 20, 2013
Dunes breached in a number of sections of the state park during Superstorm Sandy; sections of park slated to open sometime next week
Surf fisherman often trudged through the sand on Two-Bit Road at Island Beach State Park to make their way around the towering dunes, on their way to the beach and the waves. But there is little in the way of a cut now, since Superstorm Sandy swamped the park on Oct. 29. And in many sections of Island Beach, the carefully cultivated, cherished dunes - strengthened by beach grass and protected by snow fence - are no more. "There's a lot more devastation at this end of the beach," said Area Supervisor Ray Bukowski, as he steered his Ford F-250 down the nearly deserted beach in the park's Northern Natural Area. The beach is littered with pilings, crab pots, storm debris and even a roller coaster car from nearby Seaside Heights. The scene is …
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Budget increases due to storm costs, plummeting ratables make a nasty mix
Jersey Shore residents shouldn't waste any time wondering if their taxes will go up in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy. They will. Without a doubt. That was the somber message tax attorney Jeff J. Horn had for members of the Regular Republican Organization of Berkeley Township Monday night. Toms River-based Horn was originally scheduled to speak along with Berkeley Tax Assessor Eric L. Zanetti at the Central Regional Middle School, but Zanetti had to cancel because of bronchitis. Municipal, county and school budgets will rise, as officials struggle with plummeting ratable bases due to the storm which slammed into the Jersey Shore on Oct. 29, he said. "The ripple effect is going to impact all of us," Horn said. "That's the basics. It is …
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Things have changed since late October, when Sandy slammed into a quiet Bayville neighborhood near the Toms River
My longtime neighbor sits at a table in her dimly-lit kitchen. She is weary and numb. Superstorm Sandy is to blame. At 82, she has decided to sell her much-loved home across the street from the Toms River at a bargain price. She is basically selling the lot in this neighborhood known as Toms River Shores in Bayville. She loves it here. Up until a few years ago, she would routinely trundle her kayak down the street, lug it over the sands of the civic association beach, shove off and paddle blissfully on the river. A gardener extraordinaire, she loved to cultivate trees from cuttings and seeds and putter around in her garden. But those days are suddenly, all too abruptly gone forever. The flood waters swamped her crawlspace, garage and …
Friday, December 21, 2012
State hopes to reopen sections of the 'crown jewel' of the state park system to very limited access soon
The morning of Oct. 29 was an uneasy one for Ray Bukowski and his staff at Island Beach State Park. All reports indicated a superstorm of catastrophic proportions was headed for the New Jersey coast. So they did what they could do. They boarded up windows, moved vehicles and equipment into the maintenance building, one of the highest points in the park. "We did what we could do," he said. "We took every precaution to minimize impact to the buildings. We jammed everything we could into the garages. That really was all we could do. Our goal was to make sure we secured everything and everyone was out of the park." Park workers even took down the windmill at the A-21 rest area, "so it wouldn't fly away and end up in Barnegat," Bukowski said. …
Monday, December 17, 2012
South Seaside Park resident comes up with way to thank first responders, cheer barrier island residents
Courtney Chibarro was luckier than many after Superstorm Sandy slammed into the Jersey Shore on Oct. 29. Her family home on Roberts Avenue and the dunes in South Seaside Park were high enough to keep flood waters at bay. On Thanksgiving Day, when the chaos of evacuation had passed, she took a little time to reflect on how the storm had affected her friends and neighbors on the barrier island and the mainland. And she wanted to do something to thank the first responders and volunteers who are still helping out. "I called some of my neighbors and friends," she said. Chibarro asked them if they would help out with thank you cards and come up with ways to liven holiday spirits. That's how "Christmas on the Island" was born. The event will …
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Work on gas lines will hopefully be completed today, mayor says
Seaside Park and South Seaside Park residents will have to wait a little bit longer to get into their homes. New Jersey Natural Gas workers have finished pressurizing gas lines in Seaside Heights and Pelican Island and have moved onto to Seaside Park and South Seaside Park today, Berkeley Township Mayor Carmen F. Amato Jr. said. "The bridge is open and Pelican Island and Seaside Heights are open," Amato said. "The gas company is in Seaside Park and South Seaside Park repressurizing the gas lines. For safety precautions, both areas are closed today. We are hopeful they have 18 crews in the area and barring any unforeseen anomalies, they should finish today." Once the lines are pressurized, NJNG employees will do meter rebuilds. When the …
Friday, December 14, 2012
Leaks discovered in Seaside Heights, Pelican Island okay, Mayor Carmen F. Amato Jr. says
The Thomas A. Mathis Bridge over Barnegat Bay will remain closed on Friday, since New Jersey Natural Gas has more remedial work to do on the barrier island, Mayor Carmen F. Amato Jr. said. "The township was informed that New Jersey Natural Gas has encountered more leaks on the barrier island that they expected in Seaside Heights," Amato said tonight. The news sets the company's timetable for pressurizing the gas lines back one day and prohibits access to the storm-ravaged towns on the peninsula via the Route 37 East bridge on Friday. "New Jersey Natural Gas has additional work to do on the repressurization project...that will require access to homes to remain restricted on Friday," Amato said. "The bridge must remain closed on Friday …
Sunday, December 2, 2012
Funeral arrangements announced for 25-year-old Christopher Monahan of Island Heights
Christopher M. Monahan's last tour of duty in the Middle East was his third deployment away from his wife and three small children. The young man joined the U.S. Marines after he graduated from Central Regional High School in 2006. He lived most of his life in Ocean Gate, but had moved to Island Heights before his deployment, according to his obituary from Anderson and Campbell Funeral Home in Toms River. Monahan - a Marine Corps motor vehicle operator assigned to Combat Logistics Battalion 2, Combat Logistics Regiment 2, 2nd Marine Logistics Group, II Marine Expeditionary Force - was killed on Nov. 26 while conducting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan, the Department of Defense said earlier this week. The 2006 graduate of…
Michelle Blamble
9:15 am on Tuesday, February 5, 2013
The current prelim maps have V zones on the beach and bay and A in between. But it seems that our wonderful town engineer has been working to convince FEMA that the entire island should be a V so they may change it. Wonder if we can sue him personally for violating his fiduciary duty? more ›