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HURRICANE IRENE: Part One: Emergency workers remember battle of Hurricane Irene

By Amy Batista, Special Writer
   Emergency responders have not forgotten Hurricane Irene.
   It was the first time Hightstown firefighters had to abandon their firehouse.
   ”The one thing I remember most was standing in front of the firehouse, and the chief said, ‘abandon the firehouse,’” said Rich Mastriano, a firefighter of Hightstown Engine Company No. 1 on Aug. 17. “I have never heard that before in my 38 years of being here.”
   When the storm hit the night of Aug. 27 last year, Hightstown Fire Chief Larry Van Kirk also was serving the borough as the director of the Office of Emergency Management.
   ”I just went over to police dispatcher, and I told the police that were on duty, call East Windsor police, tell them that they have to take over 911 dispatching for Hightstown because they are our secondary 911 dispatch center,” Chief Van Kirk told the Herald on Aug. 17.
   He recalled saying, “‘Have Cranbury police take care of themselves. They can run their own dispatching as far as their calls. And tell all Hightstown units that 976 dispatch is going off the air.’ Basically, as soon as she did all of that, I don’t know which patrolman assisted or carried her out, but as that happened, the water just rolled right into the dispatch center.”
   Hightstown police officer Frank Jimenez was off that night and was called into work during Hurricane Irene, arriving on location around 11:30 p.m. Aug. 27.
   ”That’s when it just started flooding in our garage,” Patrolman Jimenez said Aug. 17. He said the flooding occurred right around the time he arrived at the station.
   ”Within 30 minutes, the place was 2 feet deep,” he said.
   Mr. Jimenez said police called in as many people as they could to save as many hard drives as they could at the police station. The station was relocated to a rental property on Mercer Street in town.
   ”We saved three or four of (the drives) for the whole borough, the big ones (the mainframes of the borough) so everybody didn’t lose all of their taxes and their payments, and we didn’t have to start from scratch,” he said.
   Next, all the police cars were moved up on dry land, which was a lot by Kraisers.
   ”I believe we went above and beyond,” he said. “We parked the regular (police cars) and took our own trucks through 3 or 4 feet of water, some of us losing them because they never worked the same again.
   ”It definitely strapped the department,” said Detective Benjamin Miller of the Hightstown Police Department. “We were maxed out in terms of manpower and hours, but it’s also something that we banded together and rose above and continued to provide services to the residents of the borough. It’s an interesting dichotomy because, in a sense, we were there to help everyone else, which we did, and we still performed, and at the same time, we became a victim,” Detective Miller said.
   Hightstown Engine Company No. 1 posted Aug. 25 on its Facebook page: “Make sure you secure your outdoor stuff. Being prepared before a storm is half the battle. Know that Hightstown Engine Co. No. 1 will be ready to assist you.”
   The firehouse experienced more than 4 feet of flooding that night. Prior to that, it had been designated as a shelter, which meant seven displaced people had to be evacuated, according to emergency personnel.
   Scott Krakowski, of East Windsor, and a member of the Hightstown Engine Co. No. 1, recalled spending most of his time in the water following the hurricane in a different kind of uniform — not turnout gear, but a dry suit.
   He was at the water treatment plant placing sandbags and trying to pump out the water in an effort to save the plant.
   ”I was in a dry suit for 12 hours,” Mr. Krakowski said. “I was in the water helping sandbag and trying to pump (floodwaters from) the water treatment plant out.”
   Mr. Mastriano added, “Me and a few other guys were on the squirt truck and were up to our waist in fast-moving water. I had never stood in water that was trying to take me away as much as this way.”
   ”It was chaotic because we weren’t prepared for what happened,” Mr. Krakowski said. “We were sandbagging up here (at the water treatment plant), and the next thing you heard was the chief saying ‘put us out of service — we are taking on water’ because we were then rushing to get (the sandbags out) to salvage whatever we could get out.”
   Mr. Krakowski said the Fire Department has learned some lessons from Irene, including the importance of storing its gear up higher.
   Chief Van Kirk said, “We’ve had some hiccups with the borough, but everything is good now . . . Renovations (of the firehouse) are moving forward.”
   Despite the flooding, the Fire Department’s Facebook page posted a message Aug. 29, 2011, “We are still cleaning up. Our trucks are back at the firehouse. We have been and will be responding to all calls. We are here to serve you. If you need our help, please call. Thank you for all your support.”
   Chief Van Kirk said, “The Fire Department is back to where it was and is actually better prepared for such and emergency or disaster.”
   The chief pointed to two issues as core reasons as to why such a disastrous flood occurred in town as he stood outside the firehouse last week and pointed downtown toward Peddie Lake and the still-closed Borough Hall.
   ”One (issue) was when the actual bridge (of Peddie Lake) washed away, (the water) had nowhere else to go and went towards Borough Hall,” he said.
   Mr. Van Kirk said Hightstown Engine Co. No. 1 and Hightstown High School are designated evacuation locations to accept “displaced residents in time of an emergency.”
For Part II of this story, featuring the response of East Windsor Volunteer Fire Company No. 2, as well as the Hightstown First Aid Squad, pick up next week’s edition of the Windsor-Hights Herald, available on newsstands Aug. 31.
Emergency workers
remember battle of
Hurricane Irene
‘Abandon the firehouse’
Hightstown Engine Co. No. 1 courtesy photoLast August, Hightstown Engine Co. No.1 members rescue a person who thought he could swim across the bridge, firefighter Scott Krakowski recalled to the Herald. Partaking in the rescue are firefighters Chuck Pietzsch (left) and Frank Gianotto.
Photo by Amy BatistaEarlier this month, on Aug. 18, Chief Tristan Torres, of East Windsor Rescue Squad District 2, shows how far the water at Etra Lake had flood on Milford Road upon a first responder when he followed East Windsor Volunteer Fire Co. No. 2 through it for a call during Hurricane Irene on Aug. 27, 2011.
Photo by Amy BatistaHightstown Engine Co. No. 1 firefighters take a few moments to reflect and view some footage from the company’s security cameras during Hurricane Irene while at the firehouse Aug. 16.
Emergency
ÿ8EMERGENCYÿ
Amy BatistaSpecial Writer
   Emergency responders have not forgotten Hurricane Irene.
   It was the first time Hightstown firefighters had to abandon their firehouse.
   ”The one thing I remember most was standing in front of the firehouse, and the chief said, ‘abandon the firehouse,’” said Rich Mastriano, a firefighter of Hightstown Engine Company No. 1 on Aug. 17. “I have never heard that before in my 38 years of being here.”
   When the storm hit the night of Aug. 27 last year, Hightstown Fire Chief Larry Van Kirk also was serving the borough as the director of the Office of Emergency Management.
   ”I just went over to police dispatcher, and I told the police that were on duty, call East Windsor police, tell them that they have to take over 911 dispatching for Hightstown because they are our secondary 911 dispatch center,” Chief Van Kirk told the Herald on Aug. 17.
   He recalled saying, “‘Have Cranbury police take care of themselves. They can run their own dispatching as far as their calls. And tell all Hightstown units that 976 dispatch is going off the air.’ Basically, as soon as she did all of that, I don’t know which patrolman assisted or carried her out, but as that happened, the water just rolled right into the dispatch center.”
   Hightstown police officer Frank Jimenez was off that night and was called into work during Hurricane Irene, arriving on location around 11:30 p.m. Aug. 27.
   ”That’s when it just started flooding in our garage,” Patrolman Jimenez said Aug. 17. He said the flooding occurred right around the time he arrived at the station.
   ”Within 30 minutes, the place was 2 feet deep,” he said.
   Mr. Jimenez said police called in as many people as they could to save as many hard drives as they could at the police station. The station was relocated to a rental property on Mercer Street in town.
   ”We saved three or four of (the drives) for the whole borough, the big ones (the mainframes of the borough) so everybody didn’t lose all of their taxes and their payments, and we didn’t have to start from scratch,” he said.
   Next, all the police cars were moved up on dry land, which was a lot by Kraisers.
   ”I believe we went above and beyond,” he said. “We parked the regular (police cars) and took our own trucks through 3 or 4 feet of water, some of us losing them because they never worked the same again.
   ”It definitely strapped the department,” said Detective Benjamin Miller of the Hightstown Police Department. “We were maxed out in terms of manpower and hours, but it’s also something that we banded together and rose above and continued to provide services to the residents of the borough. It’s an interesting dichotomy because, in a sense, we were there to help everyone else, which we did, and we still performed, and at the same time, we became a victim,” Detective Miller said.
   Hightstown Engine Company No. 1 posted Aug. 25 on its Facebook page: “Make sure you secure your outdoor stuff. Being prepared before a storm is half the battle. Know that Hightstown Engine Co. No. 1 will be ready to assist you.”
   The firehouse experienced more than 4 feet of flooding that night. Prior to that, it had been designated as a shelter, which meant seven displaced people had to be evacuated, according to emergency personnel.
   Scott Krakowski, of East Windsor, and a member of the Hightstown Engine Co. No. 1, recalled spending most of his time in the water following the hurricane in a different kind of uniform — not turnout gear, but a dry suit.
   He was at the water treatment plant placing sandbags and trying to pump out the water in an effort to save the plant.
   ”I was in a dry suit for 12 hours,” Mr. Krakowski said. “I was in the water helping sandbag and trying to pump (floodwaters from) the water treatment plant out.”
   Mr. Mastriano added, “Me and a few other guys were on the squirt truck and were up to our waist in fast-moving water. I had never stood in water that was trying to take me away as much as this way.”
   ”It was chaotic because we weren’t prepared for what happened,” Mr. Krakowski said. “We were sandbagging up here (at the water treatment plant), and the next thing you heard was the chief saying ‘put us out of service — we are taking on water’ because we were then rushing to get (the sandbags out) to salvage whatever we could get out.”
   Mr. Krakowski said the Fire Department has learned some lessons from Irene, including the importance of storing its gear up higher.
   Chief Van Kirk said, “We’ve had some hiccups with the borough, but everything is good now . . . Renovations (of the firehouse) are moving forward.”
   Despite the flooding, the Fire Department’s Facebook page posted a message Aug. 29, 2011, “We are still cleaning up. Our trucks are back at the firehouse. We have been and will be responding to all calls. We are here to serve you. If you need our help, please call. Thank you for all your support.”
   Chief Van Kirk said, “The Fire Department is back to where it was and is actually better prepared for such and emergency or disaster.”
   The chief pointed to two issues as core reasons as to why such a disastrous flood occurred in town as he stood outside the firehouse last week and pointed downtown toward Peddie Lake and the still-closed Borough Hall.
   ”One (issue) was when the actual bridge (of Peddie Lake) washed away, (the water) had nowhere else to go and went towards Borough Hall,” he said.
   Mr. Van Kirk said Hightstown Engine Co. No. 1 and Hightstown High School are designated evacuation locations to accept “displaced residents in time of an emergency.”
This is Part I  of a two-part story.