Irene: One Year Later

How has the 2011 storm impacted you? Send us your photos and feedback.

Sunday marks the first anniversary of the storm that pulled trees from their roots, flooded streets and cars, decimated homes and businesses and left thousands without power. After Irene blew through New Jersey in August 2011, Patch was there to cover the hurricane that had been downgraded to a tropical storm. The impact of the storm and subsequent flooding is still evident in some areas of Union County. In Cranford - one of the most severely impacted towns in the county - 18 houses that were heavily damaged are being elevated to prevent flood waters from future storms from submerging the structures. Some residents are still in the process of rebuilding parts of their homes that were destroyed. Behind the municipal building on Springfield …

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Roosevelt Students Donate Play Proceeds to Cranford

The cast and crew of 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' contributed $500 to Cranford's Brookside School's recovery effort.

The cast and crew of the Roosevelt Intermediate School fall play, 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' recently donated over $500 to the Brookside School in Cranford to assist with the school's recovery efforts following Hurricane Irene.  The fundraising effort was the brainchild of RIS parent Amy Flax, who suggested donating the play’s proceeds from ad sales and audience contributions to Brookside. The production's assistant director Erica Hodges, Linda King, fine arts supervisor for the Westfield Public Schools, director Kim Jonny, Brookside School Principal Michael Klimko, and RIS students Jessica Zimmermann ("Alice"), Frank Guerriero ("White Rabbit") and Jason Starita ("Tweedle Dee") presented the check at Washington School in Garwood, …

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The Five Minute Tidbit: Pride of the Irish

Barry O'Donovan of The Kilkenny House chats over Harkin Curry Pie.

We caught up with Barry O'Donovan, owner of The Kilkenny House in Cranford to talk about authentic Irish fare, Hurricane Irene and the town who saved his restaurant. Patch: Your having Harkin Curry Pie (chicken simmered with onions, peas, carrots in an authentic curry sauce topped with a puff pastry cap, $9) for lunch. It smells amazing. Is this your favorite comfort food? O'Donovan: Being from Ireland, Curry is huge and so is chicken pot pie. This is a combination of the two. Every pub over there has a curry dish on the menu. It is real comfort food for me. The curry that we use is from Ireland and milder and sweeter than its Indian cousin. There are french fries in it too which is the way we present it. Patch: Coming from Ireland, you …

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Westfield Students Bring Smiles To Cranford Flood Victims With Special Performance

Roosevelt School in Westfield put on a special performance of 'Alice in Wonderland' for students of Brookside Place School in Cranford.

Each fall, Westfield's Roosevelt Intermediate Middle School puts on a play, but this year’s performance of “Alice in Wonderland” was extra special. Their last rehearsal before last Friday's opening night would typically have been quiet, but instead, they had a much larger audience than normal: the students, parents, and teachers of Brookside Elementary in Cranford were all in attendance. The damage Brookside Place sustained from Hurricane Irene forced officials to close the facility until at least February and the students were relocated to three different schools in the Cranford School Distict. With brothers, sisters, friends and teachers dispersed to different schools, the staff at Roosevelt wanted to make them feel welcome and at home. …

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What Went Right or Wrong During Hurricane Irene?

The Board of Public Health invited local officials and members of the public to express their concerns and suggestions.

The latest hearing on the utility companies' response to Hurricane Irene drew a sparse crowd in Scotch Plains Thursday. Those who did attend either praised PSE&G or expressed concern over the location of the Cranford substation, that under water left many without power for days. Karen Johnson, Director of Communications for PSE&G said representatives from the Board of Public Utilities and utility companies would not speak during the hearing, but wanted to hear public concerns. Assemblywoman Linda Stender commented on the low attendance at the meeting; there were only three comments from residents, the others who spoke were local officials in Union County. “It has been two months since Hurricane Irene. I think that now, people are focused …

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Westfield Weather Central

Irene Took Economic Toll on Some Downtown Businesses

Many stores and restaurants closed for days following hurricane.

Downtown Westfield Corporation Executive Director Sherry Cronin said the effects of Hurricane Irene on the downtown area were devastating. She and her coworkers spoke to many managers and owners of stores and restaurants and said everyone was distraught after either losing power or being flooded. Since most businesses did not regain power until Tuesday afternoon, the financial losses were huge, she said.   Sunday and Monday were really bad,” Cronin said. “What hurt them the most was having no power.” The majority of the restaurants with the exception of Mario’s Deli and Casa Di Pizza all lost power and had to throw out all of their food. Luckily, most of the shops were up and running by Tuesday night in time for the Jazz Festival, Cronin …

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Westfield Weather Central

BOE Spokeswoman: No Damage to Schools After Irene

Schools scheduled to open on time, mayor establishes temporary power station for Wilson School.

In the wake of hurricane Irene, one of the looming questions was will school start on time?   Most towns including Westfield start school next week and since Irene caused flooding and power outages in many schools, there was a chance school may not start on time. All Westfield public schools are scheduled to start school on Wednesday morning.        After being without power until last Wednesday, Lorre Korecky, the school district's spokeswoman said power is back on at all of the schools, including Wilson School which went the longest without power. Korecky said Mayor Andy Skibitsky arranged for a temporary power station be put in an area surrounding Wilson School. To avoid flooding, janitors moved a generator from school to school on …

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Westfield Weather Central

Mold, Restaurant Inspections Top Post-Irene Health Concerns

Health officer says all Westfield restaurants have been inspected following the power outage.

After Hurricane Irene flooded parts of town, the Westfield Regional Health Department began inspecting local restaurants to ensure residents' health would not be compromised from area eateries. “No one failed,” Health Officer Megan Avallone said. “All of the restaurants were very cooperative," and all passed the inspections. There really are not many health concerns due to the hurricane, Avallone said. The health department encourages anyone with a well on their premises to disinfect the well. But, the most important thing for all restaurant owners that lost power was to throw away their food, she said. It is also imperative to sanitize everything in the kitchen if it was flooded, she said.   “When in doubt, throw it out,” Avallone said. …

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The Week in Union County: Post Irene, Towns Work to Return to Normalcy

Hurricane Irene left many homes damaged, flooded and without power. Read on to see how each municipality fared, what frustrated them and how they are working on getting back to normal.

Clark-Garwood It was the week of Irene. As the hurricane, hit we reported on some of the wildest flooding Clark has ever seen: the Valley Road bridge nearly disappeared under the overflowing Rahway River and the Garden State Parkway near the Clark exit became more like the Garden State "Flood" way. We also reported on the dedicated volunteers who ran an American Red Cross Shelter at the Clark Rec. Center, providing shelter and comfort for some 100 evacuees. As the town recovered from downed trees, flooded basements and power outages, the only remaining damaged to be repaired is the Madison Hill Road bridge, in which a huge sinkhole formed from water rushing beneath. The county expects that repairs may take months. In Garwood, power was the…

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