BREAKING NEWS: Local officials are reaching out to the community in wake of terror attacks.
By: Nick D’Amore and Brian Shappell
South Brunswick schools and churches are reaching out to the community in the wake of terrorist attacks in New York City and other areas nationwide.
The school district will keep buildings open for the next 24 hours, while the South Brunswick Area Clergy Association is asking churches and other houses of worship to keep their doors open to allow community members to come in and pray.
Commuters returning from the city to Park and Ride 8A on Route 130 are expressing shock and sadness in the bombing’s wake.
Residents of central New Jersey watched their television sets in horror Tuesday morning as details of unprecedented terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C., unfolded before their eyes.
Two planes crashed into both of the World Trade Center towers in Manhattan’s financial district and another plane crashed into the Pentagon in Arlington, Va.
The attacks forced the evacuation of lower Manhattan and all bridges and tunnels between New York and New Jersey were closed.
The American Red Cross of Central New Jersey in West Windsor activated its disaster response team and two emergency response vehicles were sent to lower Manhattan to assist in the relief effort.
State Police Barracks in West Trenton is coordinating emergency response in New Jersey.
School officials are meeting with township officials and police to assess the situation and to decide whether to inform the younger students of the district of the situation. Students at South Brunswick High School and Crossroads School have been informed.
District officials said they do not want to send students home without knowing if parents will be there.
"The schools are the safest place for the children to be," said Maribeth Edmunds, administrative assistant to the central office.
South Brunswick schools will remain open 24 hours for children whose parents are not home and for staff who need accommodations, according to a press release.
South Brunswick police are sending six officers to aid New York City police.
Public Information Officer Jim Ryan said South Brunswick has declared a state of emergency "to coincide with the acting governor’s declaration."
The South Brunswick Police Department were contacted through the State Police.
"There are a number of officers and firemen missing in New York," said Officer Ryan.
The police are also on alert locally. Chief Michael Paquette said there are "over half a dozen" areas in the town that may attractive to terrorists. He would not name them.
The police have had a number of meetings today with EMS, the three fire departments, municipal officials and the Department of Public Works to mobilize emergency management. Chief Paquette said an Instant Command System is in place as a way to deal with the situation with a "degree of reason."
"It determines who is in charge of all areas and how to branch off that," he said.
He said the department is also prepared to help in New York City, should they be called upon.
"Our hearts go out to the victims in New York City," said Chief Paquette.
The Rev. Francis Hubbard of St. Barnabas Episcopal Church, who is president of the clergy association, said the group is asking churches "to be open for prayer, not just for members of the congregations, but for anyone in their neighborhoods who wants to pray."
He said that the Rev. Joseph Desmond of St. Cecilia’s R.C. Church in Monmouth Junction, the Rev. Robert Lynam of St. Augustine’s R.C. Church in Kendall Park, Imam Hamad Ahmad Chebli if the Islamic Society of Central Jersey and Father Hubbard signed an addendum to a school district letter asking the community to pray together.
"We are all doing what we can to respond to this unbelievable cataclysm," Father Hubbard said.
Commuters were shocked and saddened by the events. Joseph Mackiewicz, manager of Park and Ride 8A on Route 130, was on duty when the first bus loads of commuters returned from the horror in New York.
"There were a lot of people in tears," Mr. Mackiewicz said. "A lot of the riders are close knit because they commute together on a daily basis. People know a lot of people who commute to Wall Street and the World Trade Centers."
Approximately 1,000 people from several local communities including South Brunswick, Monroe Township, Cranbury, Plainsboro and New Brunswick commute to Manhattan daily from the South Brunswick bus depot.
"There are people whose lives have been rocked," Mr. Mackiewicz said. "It’s conceivable there are people that commute from this station that are deceased. My first reaction was sadness because I know a lot of these people because I deal with them on a daily basis and am close with them. I’ve seen these people in here with their families, their kids."
Another employee at the depot said he was awakened via phone by his boss with the news. Quiet and fighting back tears, the young man said he was concerned about the safety of several loved ones including his girlfriend.
"All my family is in New York, so I’m really worried," he said.
According to Coach USA representatives, people are being transported by train into Newark’s Penn Station where buses will depart for several destination throughout the state including the Park and Ride 8A.
South Brunswick Post Managing Editor Hank Kalet and Princeton Packet Staff Writer Jeff Milgram contributed to this report.

