Sunday, April 28, 2013
Insurance companies blame 2011's Tropical Storm Irene, Halloween nor'easter — not Sandy — for highest in nation auto rate increase.
New Jersey motorists, who currently pay among the highest rates for auto insurance now, are going to have to dig a bit deeper into their wallets to pay for increases in auto insurance, according to published report Sunday. Insurers and state regulators are saying Hurricane Sandy, which devastated portions of the state including the Jersey Shore, is not the reason for state approving rate increases for 26 insurers thus far in 2013, according to a NorthJersey.com report. Instead, officials blame the rate increases on losses related to Tropical Storm Irene and the Halloween nor’easter from two years ago, medical costs that continue to rise, reinsurance expenses and dim forecasts of investment income, the report said. Allstate, New Jersey …
Sunday, October 28, 2012
What causes them, how they're measured, the worst in recent memory, how to prepare, and more.
Here is a primer on hurricanes, including interesting hurricane facts, an explanation of the Saffir-Simpson scale, descriptions of some of the most devastating hurricanes in recent history, and a guide to how you and your family should prepare in case of a hurricane. What IS a hurricane? A hurricane is a storm with sustained wind speed of at least 74 miles per hour. A tropical storm has wind speeds of 39 to 73 mph. A tropical depression is a storm with a wind speed of 38 mph. The anatomy of a hurricane To have a hurricane, you have to have warm water; this is why hurricanes only happen in the summer. Hurricanes are started by tropical depressions over water that’s at least 80 degrees. Air from surrounding areas with higher air pressure …
Thursday, October 25, 2012
JCP&L instituted new communications, repair plans after last year's major storms—will it be enough?
Two months after New Jersey residents recovered from flooding and damage caused by 2011's Hurricane Irene, the area was hit with a severe winter storm. The storm's snowfall piled more than a foot deep in many areas, and the heavy, wet precipitation snapped tree limbs and utility poles, causing massive power outages that in some cases took a week to repair. And on the anniversary of that storm, New Jersey is facing a potentially more dangerous storm: Hurricane Sandy, which has already claimed lives in the Carribean and is currently forecast to reach the area Monday morning—just in time to collide with a possible winter storm. Keeping a close eye on the storms are meteorologists with JCP&L, which says employees have already been put on alert…
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Recently-released state Board of Public Utilities report charges FirstEnergy affiliate with being more concerned with image during Irene.
JCP&L, since Hurricane Irene in August 2011, has said it has committed a lot of money and resources toward improving not only how the utility communicates with its customers, but also how it runs its business. The state Board of Public Utilities, however, handed down a verdict in a recent report that states the FirstEnergy affiliate first spent more energy trying to save face, according to a NJBIZ.com article. The article notes the BPU report cites JCP&L's initial two Irene press releases from Aug. 28 and Aug. 25, 2011, the latter three days before the storm actually hit New Jersey. JCP&L "gave no indication that restoration could take several days or longer. Advice to customers appeared to have secondary importance," according to the BPU …
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
A year after Hurricane Irene hit Chatham, we look at how parts of town have recovered from the storm.
On Aug. 28 2011, Chathamites woke up to survey the damage to their neighborhoods caused by Hurricane Irene. This year we look at how parts of Chatham affected by the hurricane have recovered. Remember the huge tree that fell across Main Street and blocked traffic? There is still a crater in the ground near the Shehadi building from where that tree went down. Remember the collapse of the bridge over Days Creek near Chatham Middle School? Chatham Borough rushed to find a contractor who could fix the bridge before school started. Remember how the Passaic River overran its banks and flooded nearby homes and streets? Share your photos of the flooding and current photos of the river within its banks.
Saturday, August 18, 2012
How has the hurricane impacted you?
After Hurricane Irene blew through Chatham in August 2011, Chatham Patch went through town and took video of the damage. One year later, we're asking you: How does the storm continue to impact you? What trees fell on your property that have yet to be replaced? What changes did you make in and around your home after the power went out—and in some cases, stayed out for days? Add photos of your neighborhood from the storm, and photos today so Chatham residents can see how far cleanup has come. Leave your comment below, or email Laura.Silvius@Patch.com with your stories about how Hurricane Irene impacted you and your family.
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Florham Park PBA presents honor
- POLICE & FIRE
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Saturday, April 21, 2012
JCP&L crew supervisor Jose M. Colon has been honored by Florham Park Policeman’s Benevolent Association Local 78 for his dedication and determination to help restore power during Hurricane Irene and the October 2011 snowstorm. “On both occasions, Jose went above and beyond the call of duty to make sure that the Borough of Florham Park had its power restored as soon as possible, Florham Park Chief of Police Patrick Montuore said in a statement provided by the company. “Without his dedication to duty and determination under extremely adverse conditions, the local restoration operation would have not been the huge success it was.” Colon has worked at JCP&L for 23 years. He was recently named manager of Operations Services for JCP&L’s Boonton …
Monday, March 5, 2012
More payments are coming to New Jersey but officials need to work toward more permanent solutions.
It’s been six months since two torrential summer storms caused widespread flooding in North Jersey, and the costs keep rising. Last week, New Jersey's U.S. senators announced that the Federal Emergency Management Agency was giving grants of $21 million to elevate houses and to buy out homes hit especially hard by Tropical Storms Irene and Lee last year. Parsippany would see the lion’s share of that—$7.2 million, both for voluntary buyouts and to raise homes above the path of flood waters. Denville is getting $2 million. Pompton Lakes is receiving $2.2 million for buyouts. According to U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg, state and local governments are going to kick in an additional $7 million. This is just the latest, and likely not the last, in …
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Utility company serves 13 counties in New Jersey.
Jersey Central Power & Light announced a plan to invest $200 million in 2012 on projects the utility company said are "designed to improve service reliability and help meet the increasing demand for electricity in northern and central New Jersey." Donald Lynch, president of JCP&L, said Tuesday morning the investment includes the completion of several new substations, including in Andover Township in Sussex County, and in Tewksbury in Hunterdon County, as well as a $2 million investment to upgrade more than 40 distribution circuits within JCP&L's New Jersey service area, which includes 236 municipalities. "The substantial investments we plan to make this year and in the future are part of JCP&L’s ongoing efforts to improve the quality of …
Monday, January 2, 2012
The shore received a lashing, but North Jersey took the brunt.
- THE NEIGHBORHOOD FILES
- Daniel Nee
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Monday, January 2, 2012
Hurricane Irene would have been the first hurricane to make landfall in New Jersey in more than a century, had it actually been packing hurricane-strength winds at the time. But by the time Irene rolled ashore at Little Egg Inlet in southern Ocean County, its wind speed had already decreased to 69 m.p.h. – a full 5 m.p.h. short of hurricane strength – meaning it was actually just a tropical storm. Despite the findings, Irene caused significant damage in the Chathams, including power outages, downed trees across Main Street and other roads, a collapse in the bridge over Days Creek and damage to several homes and condominiums. The new findings were released Dec. 14 by the National Hurricane Center, the latest of equivalent post-mortems the …
Peggy Davison
1:17 pm on Thursday, May 2, 2013
Thanks for the link Chris! After reading the article, I too am confused as to why our rates are so high, and rising. It simply does not make any sense! more ›