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This is the latest information from the South Orange Office of Emergency Management
Essential information:
Find out what's happening in South Orangewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
- Shelter in-home, unless specific conditions exist that require you to evacuate (see below)
- 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
- County shelter is available at Codey Arena, 560 Northfield Avenue in West Orange beginning Sunday evening at 7pm
- All village offices, school district (only Monday at this time), Seton Hall and state and county offices will be closed Monday and Tuesday
- 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)
- Report power outages directly to PSE&G at 800-436-7734.
Brief Weather Information
The major impact of Hurricane Sandy is poised to hit the New Jersey area Monday night/early Tuesday morning. Hazards include significant rainfall, flooding, high winds, power outages, downed wires and trees and inaccessible roadways.
Find out what's happening in South Orangewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
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
Hurricane Sandy path:
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 or need assistance evacuating your home, 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 for non-essential personnel on Monday and Tuesday. In addition, the school district is closed Monday, as well as Seton Hall University, and all New Jersey state offfices and county offices on Monday and Tuesday.
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=CustomerNoticeT... to find out more information.
Expect roads to be inaccessible, and many roads to be flooded or dangerous to access. In the event that roads within the village become flooded, or hazardous conditions exist, roads will be mandatorily closed to all non-emergency vehicles.
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.
Leaf Collection
The department of public works has been out doing as much leaf collection as possible as well as clearing storm drains and catch basins. 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.
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/
- Village email/text/voice alerts: http://southorange.org/alerts
- Latest updates will be posted on http://southorange.org
- 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.
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