Brick Mayor Warns Flood Victims Beware Of Contractor Fraudsters

BRICK, NJ — As the cleanup continues following the flash flooding that poured water into homes and caused a mudslide into one home in Brick, Township Mayor John G. Ducey delivered an urgent message to the flood victims: watch out for fraudulent contractors.

"Don't sign anything and don't give anyone any money without having someone look it over," Ducey said Tuesday night at the Brick Township Council meeting as he gave an update on the flooding that forced evacuations in Brick's Greenbriar I senior community.

In all, 114 homes were flooded on Monday, Ducey said, most of them in Greenbriar I. Flooding also happened in homes on Primrose Lane, in Sutton Village, and along New York Avenue. A home on Paramount Way suffered damage when the torrent of rain triggered a mudslide from a cliff behind the house, Ducey said.

On New York Avenue, flood waters broke a sewer pipe and caused significant damage to a home there, Councilman Jim Fozman sad.

Ducey said the flooding resulted in water 8 feet deep on Markham Drive in Greenbriar after the area received nearly two months' worth of rain in two and a half hours. Some homes had only a little water, others had water up to the countertops, he said. None of the Greenbriar homeowners had flood insurance because the community is not in a flood zone.

Ducey said efforts are under way to seek help for the homeowners, many of them senior citizens with limited incomes and resources, with the cost of the repairs that will be needed. Those efforts include a GoFundme campaign set up by the community association. But state and local officials are trying to see what can be done to get assistance from FEMA as well.

"We have a number of communities brought to their knees" by the weekend's flooding, said Gov. Phil Murphy, who added he will visit Greenbriar I on Friday. Ducey said getting FEMA assistance requires documenting a certain level of damage to public and private property, but was not certain of the percentage.

"There is a big high threshold for federal dollars," Murphy said. "The key right now is the minute something happens is to communicate and to document."

"We were able to be very creative" in coming up with the damage estimates during the blizzards earlier this year, Murphy said, which is why it is necessary to document everything. Brick, Ocean County, and the state all declared states of emergency on Monday as the floodwaters rose, Ducey said; those declarations are critical for the process of getting assistance.

"Chief (James) Riccio declared the state of emergency immediately," as soon as he saw how bad the situation was, Ducey said. Brick police, firefghters and EMS personnel were assisted by crews from Lakewood and Point Pleasant, and they used four boats to rescue people and their pets from homes. EMS workers then checked with the evacuees once they were brought to dry land to ensure they had all the medications they are supposed to take, and went to residents' homes to retrieve medications they had forgotten.

On Tuesday, the township brought in its building inspector and electrical inspector to check the damage and determine whether it was safe for residents to return. Power was cut to 114 homes, Ducey said, but by the end of the day on Tuesday, power had been restored to 55 of those homes. Homes where the water level reached the electrical panel remain without electricity until work is done to replace compromised wiring. And 38 homes were awaiting inspection because residents were not home, he said.

Football players from Brick and Brick Memorial high schools turned out on Tuesday and Wednesday to help residents remove waterlogged belongings and begin the work that will be needed to rehabilitate homes. Ducey said the community support was significant, with Wawa donating sandwiches to feed residents, responders and voluteers, Lowe's home improvement sending bags and shovels and employee-volunteers to help.

Ducey said the Red Cross is assisting victims and inquiries about donationing clothing or other supplies should be directed to them. The local office is at 1540 West Park Ave., Ocean Township; call 732-493-9100.

Ducey also stressed the importance of keeping fraudsters at bay by not responding out of fear when it comes to having repairs made to your home, and he urged not only flood victims but their neighbors, family and friends to watch out for scammers.

"We know (scammers) like to target the elderly," he said. "Please take care of your friends and neighbors in Greenbriar" and don't jump into somehing just because you're eager to get back home.

Other GoFundme campaigns for Greenbriar residents include this one for a mother and son who have been displaced, and one for Jay and Angela Meyer; Jay is a longtime volunteer firefighter with the Bay Head Fire Department.