Gov. Murphy Updates NJ On Hurricane Florence's Potential Impact

Hurricane Florence will have an impact on New Jersey even if it doesn't directly strike the state, Gov. Phil Murphy said during a press conference on Tuesday.

Murphy said New Jersey will get possible "collateral damage" from the Category 4 storm that is expected to slam North Carolina and Virginia, possibly with 100-mph winds.

Echoing remarks former Gov. Chris Christie made when Hurricane Irene and Superstorm Sandy hit the state in 2011 and 2012, Murphy said: "Please, may I ask you to get off the beach? Pretty please? Use your head."

Murphy and other officials said New Jersey should expect rising sea levels and strong rip currents that would be life-threatening to swimmers.

Flooding could be the biggest concern since heavy rains across the state have left the ground saturated and unable to handle too much water, he said.

"We may still experience high winds and heavy rain throughout the state," Murphy said, noting that Cape May, Cumberland, Atlantic County and Salem county are at the greatest risk of having storm-related problems.

Forecasters, meanwhile, said New Jersey's risk of exposure to the storm was shrinking.

The National Weather Service has issued coastal flood advisories and a hazardous weather outlook to the whole state, saying any thunderstorms that develop will be capable of producing heavy rainfall and localized flooding. Impacts from Hurricane Florence remain possible late in the week.

But Alex Staarmann, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Mount Holly, NJ, said Hurricane Florence is actually moving farther to the south. "We're still expecting the possibility of heavy rains," he said.

Here is the forecast:

• Tuesday Afternoon: A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Some of the storms could produce heavy rain. Cloudy, with a high near 81. East wind around 5 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
• Tuesday night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 11pm. Some of the storms could produce heavy rain. Patchy fog after 2am. Otherwise, cloudy, with a low around 70. Light east wind. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
• Wednesday: A chance of showers before 8am, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms between 8am and 2pm, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after 2pm. Patchy fog before 8am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a high near 81. Calm wind becoming east around 5 mph in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
• Wednesday night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 2am. Patchy fog after 2am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a low around 70. East wind around 5 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
• Thursday: A chance of showers and thunderstorms, mainly after 8am. Patchy fog before 8am. Otherwise, mostly cloudy, with a high near 79. East wind 7 to 11 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
• Thursday night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 69. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
• Friday: A chance of showers, with thunderstorms also possible after 2pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 77. Chance of precipitation is 40%.
• Friday night: A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 66. Chance of precipitation is 30%.

Here is Murphy's press conference:

Important information:

A list of New Jersey’s County Offices of Emergency Management, with social media and local alert system links, can be found on the newly redesigned New Jersey Office of Emergency Management website: www.ready.nj.gov.

NJOEM also recommends specific emergency preparedness actions:

Make an emergency kit: Emergency kits will allow individuals and families to survive several days without access to food, water or electricity. Emergency kits should include at least a three to five day supply of non-perishable food and water, prescription medications for up to two weeks if available, baby supplies, pet supplies and any additional items for special medical needs such as an extra pair of eye glasses and batteries for hearing aids. Your kit should also include important phone numbers for doctors as well as car cell-phone chargers. While gathering your emergency kit, pack a go-bag for your family as well. Your family go-bag should be something such as a duffle bag or gym bag that is easily accessible so you can grab it and go in the event that a fireman or police officer knocks on your door and tells you to evacuate immediately. These bags should include items such as prescription medication, food, water, extra clothing, and copies of important documents and phone numbers to get you through the first few critical days. For information on how to put a family emergency kit together, visit www.ready.nj.gov.

Make an emergency plan. Make plans with family and friends in case you're not together when any type of emergency – natural, technological or man-made - occurs. Discuss how you will contact each other, where you will meet and what you will do in different situations. Become familiar with your town's evacuation routes. For information on how to put a family emergency plan together, visit www.ready.nj.gov. Pets are family too! Be sure to include them in your emergency plans by visiting www.animalemergency.nj.gov.

Download the NJ Hurricane Survival Guide: https://www.nj.gov/njoem/plan-prepare/hurricanes.shtml

When your family plan and kit are complete, consider taking it to next level by attending Community Emergency Response Team training. Information about CERT training can be found on the NJOEM website: www.state.nj.us/njoem/citizen/cert.html

Stay informed: NJOEM recommends the following ways to stay informed about emergencies:

Online – Use credible websites to get information about natural hazards and emergency preparedness. NJOEM works closely with the National Weather Service and the Federal Emergency Management Agency regarding forecasts and other important disaster news.

• National Weather Service NJ is covered by two different weather stations: Mount Holly, NJ for most of the State and Upton, NY for the NE part of the State. For Northeast NJ residents and commuters to/from New York City, please visit: www.weather.gov/okx/. For the rest of New Jersey please visit: www.weather.gov/phi/.
• National Hurricane Center - www.nhc.noaa.gov
• NJOEM - www.ready.nj.gov
• ReadyNJ Updates Blog: www.readynj.wordpress.com
• NJ Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness: www.njhomelandsecurity.gov
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Emergency Preparedness Page:http://emergency.cdc.gov/
• Federal Emergency Management Agency: www.fema.gov
• Register Ready: www.RegisterReady.nj.gov - New Jersey’s Special Needs Registry for Disasters allows NJ residents with disabilities or access and functional needs and their families, friends and associates an opportunity to provide information to emergency response agencies, so emergency responders can better plan to serve them in a disaster or other emergency. The information collected here is confidential and will not be available to the public. The information will be held securely and only used for emergency response and planning. Social Media - Social media and other advanced communications technologies are used by NJOEM and by emergency managers statewide.
• NJOEM on Facebook: www.facebook.com/READYNEWJERSEY
• NJOEM on Instagram: www.instagram/ReadyNJ
• NJOEM on Twitter: www.twitter.com/ReadyNJ
• NJOEM on YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/ReadyNJ
• NJ State Police on Facebook: www.facebook.com/NewJerseyStatePolice
• NJ State Police on Instagram: www.instagram.com/NewJerseyStatePolice
• NJ State Police on Twitter: www.twitter.com/NJSP
• NJ State Police on Instagram: www.instagram.com/NewJerseyStatePolice Alerts - Mobile / Text (SMS) & E-Mail
• NIXLE - Subscribe to the NJ State Police (NJSP) on Nixle Connect athttp://local.nixle.com/new-jersey-state-police/. New Jersey residents can register to receive messages by sending a text message with their zip code to 888777 (data rates may apply depending on your plan). Online registration is also available at www.nixle.com
• CMAS - the Community Mobile Alert System - this nationwide system is now being used the National Weather Service to transmit urgent weather info to your cell phone. A warning means the hazard is imminent; a watch means conditions are favorable for the hazard to occur. Your cell phone must be WEA (Wireless Emergency Alert) enabled to receive these messages.
• NOAA Weather Radio - is a nationwide network of radio stations broadcasting continuous weather information directly from the nearest National Weather Service Office. NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts official Weather Service warnings, watches, forecasts and other hazard information 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. NOAA Weather Radios are typically inexpensive, readily available in stores and can often be programmed for your specific area. http://www.nws.noaa.gov/nwr/

Governor Murphy photo