BELLEVILLE-NUTLEY, NJ — Recovery efforts continue in Belleville and Nutley after a severe weekend storm, which knocked out power for hundreds of residents in the two towns.
Belleville and Nutley weren’t the only New Jersey town to be walloped by heavy winds and rain last weekend. More than 120,000 people across the state were without electricity on Sunday, according to Jersey Central Power & Light, PSE&G and Atlantic City Electric.
Here are some updates in each town:
BELLEVILLE
In Belleville, trees and power lines were downed across town on Friday. Officials canceled the town’s holiday fireworks show due to the heavy rain, strong winds and lightning, as well as the power outage caused by the storm.
Belleville Mayor Frank Vélez provided multiple updates as bad weather continued through the weekend, sharing images of felled trees and toppled utility poles.
The storm left some residents without electricity for days, including residents of Lloyd Place, Vélez said.
“While we understand this was a severe storm, three days without electricity is an incredibly difficult situation for any family,” the mayor said. “Residents’ health, safety, and quality of life have been impacted, and they deserve timely action.”
On Sunday, former mayor Michael Melham – who is still serving as one of the township’s two deputy OEM coordinators – said that areas of the town still remain without power.
“At this time, PSE&G is aware of all reported outages and continues to prioritize restoration efforts,” Melham reported. “In some locations, crews are dealing with multiple broken utility poles and significant tree damage. Those areas require infrastructure reconstruction before power can be safely restored, which unfortunately takes additional time.”
Vélez noted that there were also reasons to be thankful, including the efforts from local emergency responders and public works crews.
“This is what Belleville is all about: coming together, looking out for one another, and stepping up when our community needs it most,” he said.
NUTLEY
Nutley officials also cancelled their town’s fireworks show last weekend due to the weather.
“Cleanup continues throughout the township, and progress is being made,” Nutley officials reported Saturday. “However, restoration and cleanup efforts will take time. We ask residents to please remain patient while crews continue their work, but most importantly, please stay safe by keeping cool and hydrated.”
“Please remember that 911 is for emergencies only,” officials said. “If you need to contact Nutley police, dial 973 284-4940.”
Nutley Township Commissioner Joseph Scarpelli said the storm knocked out power for several households. He credited local parks and recreation crews with working throughout the night to deal with many trees that fell during the storm.
“As we try to get the town back to normal, many of our neighbors still have no power, along with damage to their homes and property,” Scarpelli said Sunday. “Please keep them in your prayers.”
POWER COMPANY UPDATE
PSE&G released an update about the outages on Sunday evening, reporting that crews have restored power to more than 275,000 customers after the weekend storms. About 22,000 customers remained without electricity in New Jersey.
The storm impacted more than 250 transformers and damaged about 240 utility poles.
Restoration efforts may take some time, PSE&G said:
“Restoring service after a severe storm often requires rebuilding sections of the electric system before power can be restored to towns and neighborhoods. Damaged circuits that feed your town may not always be visible from your home or even your neighborhood. Repairs are frequently needed on damaged transmission and distribution lines, substations and circuits upstream from you in order to restore the power flow to you and your neighborhood. PSE&G continues to deploy additional resources, including vegetation management crews clearing fallen trees and branches from power lines so lineworkers can safely access damaged equipment and begin repairs.”
“The standard restoration process is designed to return service to the greatest number of customers as quickly as possible,” PSE&G said. “During this week however, we are focused on restoring those customers who were impacted by the heat wave last week and the July 3 storm before turning to those impacted by the July 4 storm.”
“We first restore power to critical facilities and repair major transmission and distribution lines before addressing more localized outages and individual service connections,” the company said. “Customers can learn more about how power restoration works, and why some outages take longer than others and why reporting an outage matters, on Energize!.”
Customers can report outages and receive restoration updates by:
LOCAL WEATHER FORECAST
More ugly weather may be on the way for the Belleville-Nutley area on Monday and Tuesday, forecasters say – including potential flooding.
According to the National Weather Service, there is a Hazardous Weather Outlook in effect for the region, with a Flood Watch extending into Tuesday morning.
Here’s the weather forecast in Belleville-Nutley for the rest of the week, as per the NWS:
Monday: Periods of showers and possibly a thunderstorm. Some of the storms could produce heavy rainfall. High near 73. Northeast wind around 10 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New rainfall amounts between three quarters and one inch possible.
Monday Night: Showers and possibly a thunderstorm. Low around 64. Northeast wind 8 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.
Tuesday: A chance of showers before 2pm, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms between 2pm and 5pm, then a slight chance of thunderstorms after 5pm. Cloudy, with a high near 73. Northeast wind around 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Tuesday Night: A slight chance of showers between 8pm and 2am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 64. Northeast wind around 7 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 83. North wind around 6 mph.
Wednesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 67.
Thursday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 87.
Thursday Night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms between 8pm and 2am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 72. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Friday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 87.
Friday Night: A 30 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms before 8pm. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 71.
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