Hurricane Sandy

HURRICANE SANDY: JCP&L Says it Learned From Its Mistakes

Stresses storm may knock out power for 7-10 days

  Jersey Central Power and Light (JCP&L) President Don Lynch says the company has learned from the mistakes it made from Hurricane Irene and is ready for Hurricane Sandy and the threat it poses to the state. The company took heat when Hurricane Irene left many New Jersey towns without power for days - and, in some cases, weeks. Many thought JCP&L's response was too slow. The biggest lesson learned is getting the information out to customers and municipalities as specifically, quickly and often as possible, Lynch said. The company wants its customers to know as much information as possible, he said. "Just know that Jersey Central will be working hard day and night - we've already started, should that storm hit shore here and cause outages …

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UPDATE: Power Restored to More Than 30,000 in Monmouth

Freehold hardest hit after the storm, with over 14,000 customers in the dark.

A severe thunderstorm may have brought relief from high temperatures, but it also left thousands without power in Monmouth County Saturday evening. Over 40,000 customers had lost power by 10 p.m., according to Jersey Central Power & Light. By Sunday at 8 a.m., over 8,500 in Monmouth County remained in the dark. Freehold was the worst hit, with over 9,900 without power in Freehold Township and over 4,100 in Freehold Borough on Saturday night. By Sunday morning, over 3,000 Freehold Township customers and over 600 in Freehold Borough remained without service. Neighboring Howell Township had over 8,600 customers in the dark and Manalapan Township had over 3,000. By Sunday morning, all but 59 people in Howell and 102 in Manalapan had had their …

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Hurricane Irene

No Power? No Problem!

A list of how some local families are surviving without power.

Hurricane Irene has blown through leaving many without power for days. This is not a good situation for anyone to be in but especially hard with young ones. So how do you keep your family fed and your kids entertained without power?   I posted the question on Facebook and got these responses from locals: Beth Vandermark Dantoni "We cooked: shepherds pie, pasta, pork shops, mashed potatoes, smores. Played Candy Land and cards, alot of reading, bike riding and talked!" Monica Vigerstol Guarnaccia "We didn't lose power, but neighbors did, so we had two other families over for Chinese food on Sunday, and one of the families spent the night. Diary of a Wimpy Kid and a Cheese Touch board game was a huge hit in our house! Denton and  Amy …

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Hurricane Irene

Got Power? Many Local Residents Are Still Living Without It

Over 600 people in Rumson, Fair Haven and Sea Bright still without power, and may not see any for a couple more days.

While a majority of Rumson and Fair Haven has had power restored, some homes and businesses are still in the dark. Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L) officials have spoken with borough officials and have said they should have power back on by the weekend, but could possibly go to early next week. Outages still reported on the JCP&L website are as follows: Water and ice are available to all JCP&L customers without power. Residents can pick up water and ice free of charge at Acme Supermarket, 576 River Road in Fair Haven. Customers should go to the courtesy desk and report that they are a JCP&L customer out of power.  Are you one of the customers whose power has been restored, or are you still in the dark? Do you know anyone who is still …

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Hurricane Irene

Local Businesses Deal with Power Outages Days After Hurricane Irene

Businesses with power fed hundreds of residents without it. Businesses with outages lost food and revenue.

After Irene swept across the East Coast thousands were left without electricity. Some business owners in Rumson and Fair Haven are thankful for their power; others not so fortunate are starting to feel the pressure. “We are glad to have had power through the whole storm,” said Steve Bidgood, owner of Salt Creek Grill in Rumson. “We got to feed a lot of people who didn’t have power on Sunday and Monday night.” Salt Creek Grill was one of the few businesses in Rumson that maintained power through Irene’s rage. Bidgood opened the doors to his restaurant Sunday night and served about 400 dinners to locals who had no power. “Most of my staff was able to make it in,” Bidgood said. “I had to pick up a few staff members in Red Bank since the …

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Hurricane Irene

Many Rumson and Fair Haven Residents Preparing for Another Night Without Power

Over 2 days after Hurricane Irene hit the area, residents and businesses still dealing with power outages and downed wires.

Many residents in Rumson and Fair Haven are still without power over 2 days after Hurricane Irene hit our area. “If you have power it is business as usual, if you don’t it is trying to cope,” said Fair Haven Mayor Mike Halfacre. Both Rumson and Fair Haven have most of their roads cleaned up and flooding subsided, but power is still missing in many homes and businesses.  Mayor Halfacre purchased the last generator at Home Depot this morning himself in preparation to be without power for the next couple days. “Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L) has given us zero information about what to expect or when to expect it. All they say is we are working on it,” he said. “If they could give us an idea, then we can plan. I have residents all over …

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Hurricane Irene

Video: Aftermath of Hurricane Irene in Rumson and Fair Haven

Residents dealing with tree damage, downed power lines and flooding.

Rumson and Fair Haven residents were out and about checking out the damage and the scene Sunday afternoon after Hurricane Irene pounded the area. Trees and power lines were down, there was flooding along the rivers and many residents still did not have power for over 12 hours. Check out the video above to hear locals talk about the effects of the heavy storm that hit the area on Saturday night.

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