Storm Update From The Village Of South Orange

Hurricane Sandy Preparedness Information

Monday, October 29th 430pm

Essential information regarding Hurricane Sandy as of Monday, October 29th from South Orange Office of Emergency Management

• Shelter in-home, unless specific conditions exist that require you to evacuate (see below)
• We expect the major impact of the storm to be late Monday night into Tuesday morning, with significant rainfall and extremely hazardous wind conditions
• Primary town shelter will be located at the South Orange Public Library at 65 Scotland Road. To utilize the shelter please call SOPD at 973 763 3000. Leashed pets allowed. Bring supplies/bedding.
• County shelter is available at Codey Arena, 560 Northfield Avenue in West Orange. Leashed pets allowed.
• All village offices, school district, Seton Hall and state and county offices are closed
• As of 4pm on Monday, all roads in the Village are closed for non-emergency vehicles and on-street parking suspended.
• To report a power outage contact PSE&G directly at: 800-436-7734. 
• Ensure you are signed up for emergency alerts, and have taken all steps to get real-time information from the Village and other agencies as it happens (see below) 

Brief Weather Information

The major impact of Hurricane Sandy is poised to hit the New Jersey area Monday night/early Tuesday morning. Hazards include rainfall, flooding, extreme high winds, power outages, downed wires and trees and inaccessible roadways. We are expecting significant wind hazards to exist throughout the duration of this storm, follow some of the steps outlined below to help mitigate those risks. There are already reports of many trees down, it is advisable to stay indoors in a safe place as much as possible. 

Find more weather information from Weather.gov about South Orange at: http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?CityName=South+Orange&state=NJ&site=OKX&lat=40.749&lon=-74.2616

Sheltering Information

Residents are encouraged, if appropriate, to shelter in-home. There is not an evacuation order issued for South Orange. However, if you or a member of your household has special medical needs, or your house is in an area that typically floods to an uninhabitable level, OEM guidelines suggest first attempting to make contact with nearby friends/family or take advantage of either the Village's primary shelter at the public library at 65 Scotland Road or the Essex County Shelter at Codey arena, 560 Northfiield Ave, West Orange. If the storm conditions persist, or the primary shelter reaches capacity, a backup village shelter will be located at the Seton Hall University Fieldhouse. 

Residents are encouraged to bring bedding, clothes, any food/water, medications and other supplies you might need. The shelter will be opened as needed, and if you require these accommodations and need assistance evacuating your home and being transported to the shelter, please contact the SOPD at the non-emergency number at 973 763 3000.

Residents are advised to take precautions as identified below:

• Have plenty of fresh water at your disposal 
• Have all cell phones fully charged
• Have all emergency and contact numbers available
• Have working flashlights with fresh batteries available
• Inform friends or relatives of your whereabouts
• Stay inside your home away from all windows, which should be shut and shuttered, if possible
• Store inside or securely tie down all lawn furniture, or other loose outside items 
• Remove propane tanks from outdoor grills and place in a secure location away from where flooding could occur 
• Avoid all contact with any downed or sagging wires, and be mindful of standing water surrounding a downed or sagging power wire. Immediately call 9-1-1 to report downed power lines

Village offices and operations

All Village offices will be closed on Monday and Tuesday. In addition, the school district is closed Monday, as well as Seton Hall University, and all New Jersey state offices. 

South Orange Police, Fire, Rescue Squad and public works have called in extra staff and volunteers for the duration of the storm, and village officials, key essential employees and OEM have been working around the clock to put all of the preparation in place for Sandy's arrival.

Roads/Transit/NJ Transit

Residents should expect that mass transit will not be available starting on Monday through the duration of the major storm impact through Tuesday. From New Jersey Transit:

 "NJ TRANSIT will implement a gradual system-wide shutdown of all bus, rail, light rail and Access Link service, starting at 4 p.m. on Sunday, October 28 and continuing through 2 a.m. on Monday morning." Visit http://www.njtransit.com/sa/sa_servlet.srv?hdnPageAction=CustomerNoticeTo&NoticeId=2299 to find out more information. 

 Expect major roads to be in-traversable, and many roads to be flooded or dangerous to access. As of 4pm on Monday, all roads in the Village are closed for non-emergency vehicles and on-street parking is suspended. If you need assistance getting to a shelter, contact SOPD non-emergency at 973 763 3000.

Flooding

Certain areas in town in lower-lying regions near the Rahway river typically flood in large rain quantities. We are expecting a large amount of rain beginning through the duration of Sandy, and residents in these areas should take special care to move belongings or sensitive equipment or supplies to higher ground and take advantage of staying with friends or family nearby or in a village or county operated shelter. 

Power Outages

There are already reports of power outages in Village as of Monday afternoon. PSE&G cannot tell that your power is out unless you contact them. Contact PSE&G directly to report your power being out at 800-436-7734. The Village has been in contact with PSE&G to ensure priority will be made to essential facilities and at-risk individuals and then working down from the largest neighborhoods to single users. 

Leaf Collection

The department of public works has been doing as much leaf collection as possible as well as clearing storm drains and catch basins this weekend through Monday evening. If you notice that a drain near your property is blocked, we appreciate all residents being proactive about doing best to clear them. Clearing out the drains delays the potential onset of flooding and, while the system is still within capacity, will help reduce flooding. Do not put any leaves in the street at this time.

Water Supplies

The Village has been in contact with East Orange Water Commission, which has taken preparedness steps to install backup generators to ensure that there is a continuous flow of water even if power is interrupted. 

Local Resources

There are multiple ways to get the latest information from the Village and other agencies: 

- @SouthOrangeNJ on Twitter: http://twitter.com/SouthOrangeNJ

- Nixle: https://local.nixle.com/register/

- Call the Baird hotline for a pre-recorded message at 973 762 0748

- Village email/text/voice alerts: http://southorange.org/alerts

- Latest updates will be posted on http://southorange.org

- Bulletins have been placed on SOMAtv

- South Orange Patch

- Landline telephone via reverse 911. Ensure you check your home voice messages. 

- Local email distribution lists. If you get an email, forward it to your neighbors. 

If you need assistance do not hesitate to contact South Orange Police Department at 973 763 3000. For all emergencies dial 9-1-1. For power outages, contact PSE&G directly at: 800-436-7734. 

More Information:

- readynj.posterous.com

- http://weather.gov

- http://www.ready.nj.gov/

- http://www.ready.gov/hurricanes