EASTBRUNSWICK— Hurricane Irene may have brought wind gusts of over 60 mph, just under 7 inches of rain and over 7-foothigh tidal surges on the South River.
But the township was well prepared to weather the storm, officials said during the Sept. 12 Township Council meeting.
“The township had a level of preparedness that it really never had before with any storm,” township Emergency Management Coordinator Austin Kosik said. “The residents really took the message that we were able to give them early on seriously and prepared themselves well.”
Preparations for the storm began on Aug. 21, Kosik said, when Hurricane Irene was forming in the Atlantic Ocean and the National Weather Service predicted the storm could hit Middlesex County. Kosik said everyone from department heads to part-time workers at Crystal Springs Aquatic Center pitched in to help East Brunswick make it through Irene when it struck on Aug. 27-28.
“Everybody fully engaged in this,” he said. “It wasn’t just an effort within our municipal family, but an effort that was spread out among private and other government agencies.”
Kosik said the Hilton on Route 18 provided food and housing for volunteers. The Board of Education “came through” too, Kosik said, opening up schools as local shelters when the travel ban made it impossible to bring residents to the planned Middlesex County regional shelter. The Board of Education also supplied custodial staff and two buseswith drivers to help transport evacuated residents.
Superintendent of Schools Jo Ann Magistro said that Hammarskjold Middle School was opened on 30 minutes’ notice as a local shelter. She reported that none of the schools experienced any flooding or other damage during Hurricane Irene.
“We are all proud of the efforts taken by our staff during the storm,” Magistro said.
Mayor David Stahl also commended the work of township employees during the storm, calling it a great team effort.
“Public employees tend to be put into a bad light sometimes in this day and age,” Stahl said. “But quite frankly, our public employees shined brightly throughout this event.”
Kosik said the township now enters recovery mode, and officials are working to get residents and businesses affected by the storm help from the state and federal governments. FEMA has opened a headquarters at the former parks department building on Dunhams Corner Road. Kosik said residents or business owners who have suffered any damage at all at the hands of Irene should register with FEMA by calling 1-800-621-FEMA or visit the site between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., seven days a week.
Township Administrator James White said that since the hurricane, the township has collected 1,500 tons of trash, well above the 870 tons picked up during the same time last year. Additionally, the township picked up 1,824 cubic yards of brush, almost six times the 320 cubic yards picked up during the same time last year.
“And we are still picking it up and we are going to be out there picking it up until we get it all,” White said.
Kosik added that more than 400 trees were knocked down by the storm in East Brunswick, and he warned that it could have been a lot worse.
“This was only a tropical storm,” Kosik said. “When it got here, we didn’t get hurricane force winds.”
He urged residents to prepare themselves now for future storms. Kosik said residents should have all the supplies needed to sustain themselves for 72 hours, as well as things like batteries, generators and lanterns on hand in case of a power failure.
“Preparedness is key, and now is the time to do it,” he said.