Residents air complaints of damage from flooding
Loss of power left many without use of sump pumps
BY JESSICA SMITH
Staff Writer

MILLTOWN - Several residents came to the mayor and council to seek help in the wake of the April 15 flood, and to voice complaints about how the situation was handled.

After Monday's Borough Council meeting, the residents spoke with Mayor Gloria Bradford and Councilman Randy Farkas about their concerns.

"They did what they had to do, and we were left, I wouldn't say high and dry - we were left wet," resident Saul Strober said.

Between 10 and 11 p.m. April 15, councilmen, the borough clerk and emergency workers filled sandbags to prevent stormwaters from reaching the town's electrical substation. When the water threatened to enter the substation, workers made the decision to shut power down in the borough until the storm subsided. The power remained off for more than 12 hours.

If the substation had become wet, it could have resulted in disaster ranging from electrical shorts to a full-blown fire. Damage to it would have shut down power to residents for up to three weeks, with repairs costing about $2 million, according to Councilman Bill Deinzer. With the voluntary shutdown, electricity was out in the town for 15 hours.

"We have no problem with that," Strober said. "We were rudely treated by the police, and we were given no warning."

The residents said that without electricity they could not operate their sump pumps to remove the water from their cellars, which resulted in major damages. Hilde Van Der Ploeg said she and her husband, Harold, lost a bed, two refrigerators, a microwave and water heaters in the flooding.

"Everything was drowned," Hilde said. "They didn't do their job."

Farkas pointed out that the main priority was the electrical substation, because, if damaged, it posed the biggest threat to the town.

"We were maintaining a vigil on the substation," Farkas said. "It happened so fast."

The residents also had questions about getting aid from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to help pay for their damages.

Strober said $5,000 of his property was damaged.

"We got burned, and insurance is not going to pay for this," Strober said.

Both Bradford and Farkas said they are looking into getting aid for the town. Farkas said he is planning to speak with state legislators in order to find solutions.

"We will do everything we possibly can," Farkas said.

Bradford told the residents she also endured a large amount of damage in her home, including the loss of compact discs and family photo albums in her basement.

"I'm hurting too," Bradford said.

Among other setbacks resulting from the storm was the shutting down of the borough's post office. Due to flooding and damages, the town's postal service will be run out of East Brunswick for the next six weeks, though a mobile unit is being operated on the Washington Avenue site.

Residents acknowledged the necessity of shutting down the electrical substation, but a couple of them took issue with its location, saying it is too vulnerable because it is close to a waterway. Bradford agreed, saying town officials are looking into the matter to see what can be done.

"That electrical substation has to be either protected or moved," resident Ed Kwiatkowski said.