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Three NJ lawmakers call for an independent review of a train’s role in defeating flood gates during Hurricane Ida

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This photo from NJ.com shows NJ Transit Train #5450 blocking one of Bound Brook’s floodgates from closing completely leading to flooding within the town from the remnants of Hurricane Ida. (Photo Credit: Andrew Mills | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)

New Jersey State Senator Michael Doherty, Assemblyman John DiMaio, and Assemblyman Erik Peterson (all R-23) will introduce legislation requiring an independent investigation of the flooding of Bound Brook that occurred after a disabled New Jersey Transit train blocked the town’s protective floodgates from closing during Hurricane Ida.

“It’s extremely concerning that the $300 million floodgate system that was put in place to protect Bound Brook from flooding was defeated by a disabled NJ Transit train that shouldn’t have been running,” said Doherty. “We need a transparent, independent review of this incident to understand what processes failed during Ida to ensure it doesn’t happen again.”

Although flash flood warnings had been issued due to extremely high rainfall projections as the remnants of Hurricane Ida passed over New Jersey, Raritan Valley Line Train #5450 attempted to operate in the extremely flood-prone area.

The train became stuck as the track was washed over by floodwaters and debris. A later attempt to close Bound Brook’s floodgates to protect the town from Raritan River flooding couldn’t be implemented since the train was blocking one of the gates.

“We had National Weather Service warnings that flash floods were likely along the Raritan Valley Line as a result of Ida, along with numerous reports of actual flooding by the time the train was stuck,” said DiMaio. “Why didn’t New Jersey Transit or Governor Murphy take the warnings seriously enough? Why didn’t anyone think to halt the trains in a safe place after flooding was reported? Because of these failures, Bound Brook flooded yet again.”

Bound Brook’s flood control systems include thousands of feet of levees and floodwalls, pump stations, and three floodgates, including the gate at the NJ Transit crossing that was blocked by Train #5450.

“While it took decades to plan and build Bound Brook’s flood control system, it took just seconds for a stuck train to prevent it from working,” added Peterson. “Since NJ Transit may bear some legal liability for the flood damage to homes and businesses that resulted, we shouldn’t leave it up to them to tell us what went wrong. We need an impartial, independent review to ensure that the people of Bound Brook get the honest answers they deserve.”

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EHD virus kills 700 deer so far in seven New York counties

Disease is not transmissable to humans; Public encouraged to report sick or dead deer to DEC

From the New York Department of Environmental Conservation

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) today confirmed Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease (EHD) in Columbia, Dutchess, Greene, Nassau, Oswego, Suffolk, and Ulster counties. DEC is tracking suspected cases in Albany, Jefferson, Oneida, Orange, Putnam, Rensselaer, Rockland, Sullivan, and Westchester counties and new reports of dead deer to track the spread and estimate the number of deer succumbing to this disease. To date, DEC has received reports of approximately 700 dead deer.

Transmitted by midges In New York, the EHD virus is typically a fatal disease for deer that is transmitted by biting midges, small insects sometimes called no-see-ums or ‘punkies.’ The disease is not spread from deer to deer and humans cannot be infected by deer or bites from midges.

EHD virus was first confirmed in New York deer in 2007, with relatively small outbreaks in Albany, Rensselaer, and Niagara counties, and in Rockland County in 2011. From early September to late October 2020, a large EHD outbreak occurred in the lower Hudson Valley, centered in Putnam and Orange counties, with an estimated 1,500 deer mortalities.

Once infected, deer usually die within 36 hours. EHD outbreaks are most common in the late summer and early fall when midges are abundant, although initial cases this year were detected in late July. Signs of the EHD virus include fever, hemorrhage in muscles or organs, and swelling of the head, neck, tongue, and lips. A deer infected with EHD may appear lame or dehydrated. Frequently, infected deer will seek out water sources and many succumb near a water source. There is no treatment or means to prevent EHD. Dead deer do not serve as a source of infection for other animals. EHD has been in New York since July, and has had time to circulate and spread prior to the first killing frosts. Consequently, it has been more widespread this year than during previous outbreaks.

EHD outbreaks do not have a significant long-term impact on regional deer populations, but deer mortality can be significant in small geographic areas. EHD is endemic in the southern states, which report annual outbreaks, so some southern deer have developed immunity. In the northeast, EHD outbreaks occur sporadically and deer in New York have no immunity to this virus. Consequently, most EHD-infected deer in New York are expected to die. The first hard frost is expected to kill the midges that transmit the disease, ending the EHD outbreak.

Sightings of sick or dead deer suspected of having EHD can be reported to DEC via a new online EHD reporting form, also available via DEC’s website or by contacting the nearest DEC Regional Wildlife Office. DEC will continue to collect samples from deer and analyze data from deer reports to determine the extent of the outbreak. In addition, DEC has alerted Department of Agriculture and Markets veterinarians in the region to be aware of the disease and to report suspicious cases among captive deer.

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How California’s Dixie Fire became the largest blaze of a devastating summer

Exceptional drought and searing heat exacerbated by climate change helped to fuel the monstrous inferno


By Marisa Iati and Dylan Moriarty The Washington Post

For two months, the Dixie Fire has menaced Northern California — stripping forests, forcing thousands from their homes, and swallowing most of a Gold Rush-era community.

More than 1,300 structures have been leveled. Government agencies have doled out roughly $540 million to battle the blaze. And a federal judge is scrutinizing what role California’s largest utility, the already-embattled Pacific Gas and Electric, may have played in the fire’s origin.

The blaze is the second-largest in California’s history and the biggest to burn in the U.S. this summer, as climate change turbocharged severe storms, floods, and fires. The Dixie Fire has now burned nearly 1 million acres, an area larger than New York City, Chicago, Dallas, and Los Angeles combined.

The fire’s tear through remote, rugged terrain, exceptional drought bringing moisture levels in California’s forests to historic lows, searing heat, as well as a series of unexpected obstacles, combined to fuel a monstrous blaze unlike any firefighters said they had seen before.

This timeline, based on public records and interviews with people affected by the Dixie Fire, shows how a relatively small ring of flames burning 100 miles north of Sacramento morphed into a dangerous harbinger of the devastating wildfire seasons that could be more common as the Earth continues to heat up

July 13:  A PG&E employee reports seeing flames and a tree leaning on a power line near the Cresta Dam in Feather River Canyon, a stretch of land known for both its natural beauty and powerful Jarbo winds that in 2018 helped fuel the Camp Fire, California’s deadliest.

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, colloquially known as Cal Fire, arrives at the blaze about 25 minutes after being notified and names it the Dixie Fire after one of the nearest roads. There are few, given the remote location. An unauthorized drone flies near the fire, temporarily forcing firefighting tankers and helicopters to pause their efforts.

PG&E spokesman James Noonan later tells The Washington Post that the company last evaluated the area’s trees on Jan. 14 and found none that needed trimming. PG&E also inspected the poles and wires in the area on May 13 and found nothing awry, he says.

Story continues here

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As fire threatening South Lake Tahoe slows and evacuation orders are lifted, three new wildfires erupt in California

By Kelly McCleary and Alta Spells, CNN

(CNN) Firefighters in California made significant progress against the Caldor Fire over the weekend, allowing for some evacuation orders in the Lake Tahoe region to be downgraded.

But as residents there began to breathe a sigh of relief, three new fires ignited in the state Sunday, according to Cal Fire. Evacuation orders for the city of South Lake Tahoe were downgraded to evacuation warnings, nearly a week after thousands in the resort town clogged roadways when officials told them to get out because flames were racing into the area.

Lighter winds could bring relief to firefighters battling the Caldor Fire as it threatens the Lake Tahoe region Other parts of El Dorado County saw their evacuation orders downgraded to a warning Saturday while other warnings were lifted, according to Cal Fire.

Lighter winds could bring relief to firefighters battling the Caldor Fire as it threatens the Lake Tahoe region

The areas of Fallen Leaf Lake, Christmas Valley, Meyers, and North Upper Truckee remain under an evacuation order.

Across the state border in Nevada, mandatory evacuations in Douglas County were downgraded to precautionary evacuations Saturday, according to an announcement on the county’s website, opening the door for some residents there to return home.

Read the full story here

Related news:
250-acre fire sparks beneath Foresthill Bridge
What makes wildfires so hard to put out
Unsung Pit Crew of California’s Wildfires: Hotel Workers Left Behind

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Pennsylvania crosses into ‘high’ community transmission level for Covid cases

By EUGENE TAUBER
THE MORNING CALL

The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 2,317 additional coronavirus cases on Saturday, the highest single-day number in more than three months. The seven-day moving average of newly reported cases was 1,848, up 34% from a week ago, and up more than sevenfold over the last 30 days.

To date, there have been 1.25 million infections statewide.

The state has crossed the threshold into “high” community transmission as defined by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Pennsylvania has added 101.4 cases over the last seven days for each 100,000 residents.

There are now 24 counties also in the high transmission classification, lead for almost two weeks by Northampton County, with a weekly population-adjusted rate of 158.5. Lehigh, Monroe and Montgomery are also in the highest of the four tiers, while 37 counties are in the “substantial” tier, and 5 are considered “moderate.” Only Sullivan County has a weekly rate under 10 cases per 100,000 residents, putting it in the “low” community transmission tier.

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206-Unit Development Plus Townhomes proposed in Asbury Park

New Istar Development Asbury Park 1
A new development by iStar will be proposed in Asbury Park. Rendering by Lessar Design.


By Chris Fry Jersey Digs -August 9, 20210

One of the largest stakeholders in the seaside city’s future will soon be presenting plans for a mixed-use project that would rise along a block of land just steps from the Atlantic Ocean.

During the next meeting of Asbury Park’s planning board, an application will be heard to develop a 112,000-square-foot property directly west of the Asbury Ocean Club. The company behind the endeavor, called AP Block 4001 Venture Urban Renewal, is a subsidiary of Manhattan-based iStar.

New Istar Development Asbury Park Current
Site of proposed iStar development in Asbury Park. Photo via Google Maps/Street View.

The project would consolidate 14 concurrent lots that span from 3rd Avenue to 4th Avenue along Kingsley Street and redevelop the entire vacant parcel. The endeavor would be constructed in three phases if approved and the first and most prominent portion would consist of a 206-unit building that rises 61 feet at the tallest point.

Designed by Virginia-based Lessar Design, the initial structure would vary in height from three to six stories. Units spanning from studios to three-bedroom spaces would be featured at the property, with select residences sporting balconies. A contemporary palette of light gray brick and wood cementitious fiber siding would be utilized on the building’s exterior.

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A 247-space parking garage would occupy most of the building’s first two floors, with an amenity deck sporting a swimming pool perched above the parking portion. The ground floor of the building would include 4,600 square feet of retail space fronting Kingsley Avenue split between two storefronts, and renderings released through Asbury Park show a Tandem Cycle outpost consistently referenced in the plans.

New Istar Development Asbury Park 2
The new iStar development would include street-level retail. Rendering by Lessar Design.
New Istar Development Asbury Park Aerial 2
Swimming pool. Rendering by Lessar Design.

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Dixie Fire rips through Northern California town, leveling businesses

By The Associated Press

GREENVILLE, Calif. (AP) — California’s largest wildfire has leveled much of the downtown and some surrounding homes in a small Northern California mountain community.

The Dixie Fire tore through Greenville on Wednesday evening, destroying businesses and homes as the sky was cast in an orange glow. A photographer on assignment for The Associated Press described seeing a gas station, hotel and bar burned to the ground.

“If you are still in the Greenville area, you are in imminent danger and you MUST leave now!!” the Plumas County Sheriff’s Office posted on Facebook earlier Wednesday.

Related news coverage:
‘We did everything we could’ (The Guardian)
‘We lost Greenville’ (CNN News)

The sheriff’s department and Cal Fire did not immediately respond to messages.

The 3-week-old fire has grown to over 428 square miles (1,108 square kilometers) across Plumas and Butte counties.

Firefighters had been trying to protect the town of 800 about 280 miles (450 kilometers) northeast of San Francisco by clearing debris from roads and marking hazards.

Pandora Valle, a spokesperson with the U.S. Forest Service, earlier told The San Francisco Chronicle that “firefighters are fighting for the town of Greenville,” but could not provide further details about the damage.

The destruction came amid a red flag warning issued by forecasters warning of hot, bone-dry conditions with winds up to 40 mph (64 kph). That could drive flames through timber, brush, and grass, especially along the northern and northeastern sides of the vast Dixie Fire.

“I think we definitely have a few hard days ahead of us,” said Shannon Prather with the U.S. Forest Service.

Firefighters were able to save homes and hold large stretches of the blaze. But flames jumped perimeter lines in a few spots Tuesday, prompting additional evacuation orders for about 15,000 people east of Lake Almanor, fire officials said.

Heat from the flames created a pyrocumulus cloud, a massive column of smoke that rose 30,000 feet (10,000 yards) in the air, said Mike Wink, a state fire operations section chief.

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