New Westfield Committee Will Take On Flooding; Member Applications Due Wednesday

WESTFIELD, NJ — Resident applications will be accepted through next Wednesday for the new Westfield Infrastructure Resiliency Committee.

The WIRC "will be tasked with assessing our current town-wide stormwater infrastructure and its capacity to handle these severe weather events in the future," said Mayor Shelley Brindle at the Town Council meeting Tuesday night.

The committee will make "recommendations for how best to fortify [the infrastructure], as well recommendations for ensuring we are proactively thinking about climate resiliency in everything we do going forward."

The committee will be chaired by council members Linda Habgood and Michael Dardia, and will include various town professionals. But the city is seeking "residents across each ward who have relevant personal experience in local flood prone areas, and/or professional experience in engineering, flood control, infrastructure, and other relevant fields that can supplement the town's expertise," said Brindle.

Applications will be accepted through this coming Wednesday with appointments expected to be announced at the Oct. 12 Town Council meeting, the mayor said.

For more details and an online application, visit westfieldnj.gov/wirc.

Past And Future Tropical Storms

During the recent Tropical Depression Ida, a significant amount of rain caused flooding throughout Westfield. READ MORE: FEMA Adds Union County To Disaster List For Hurricane Ida

Meanwhile, a strong Hurricane Sam is churning in the Atlantic Ocean. Forecasters don't expect it to veer toward the Northeast, but there may be life-threatening surf and rip current conditions, the National Hurricane Center says. Track Hurricane Sam here.

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