By all accounts, Moorestown Township got off pretty easy in the wake of Hurricane Irene this weekend, according to township representatives. The category one hurricane came and went Saturday night into early Sunday morning, but didn’t cause as much damage as originally estimated.
Sgt. Lee Lieber, emergency management coordinator for the township, said there was some flooding over the weekend and several downed trees, which caused some difficulties, but overall Moorestown fared well during the storm.
“We had been preparing all week with our emergency management team in conjunction with Burlington County Emergency Management. Our emergency management center was open from 6 p.m. Saturday night until 11 a.m. Sunday morning,” Lieber said. “We prepared for the worst case scenario, but we dodged a bullet.”
The major damage resulted from downed trees during the storm. The high winds, coupled with saturated ground, led to about 12 incidents of downed trees in the township, Lieber said. Several trees brought down electrical wires as well, he said, and there are still sections in the township that don’t have power Monday morning.
According to PSEG outage maps, there are less than 10,000 customers in Burlington County that are still without power.
Portions of Collins Park, Stanwick Road, Albany Road, and Maple Court all experienced some degree of flooding Saturday and Sunday, Lieber said. Albany Road and Stanwick Road were both closed for portions of the storm, but are currently reopened.
“We’re back to normal right now. There are some areas right now in the township don’t have power, but they’re doing the best they can do,” Lieber said. “I’d like to congratulate our emergency management team, including our private and public partners, for working so well together, preparing, and having this whole event come off with minimal problems. Without us working together and our volunteers, this wouldn’t have happened.”
According to Burlington County representatives, there will be no curbside recycling today. Moorestown’s recycling will be held on Thursday, Sept. 1. All of the county offices are open today, with the exception of county courtrooms.
Any resident with any other incidents should contact the township department public works at 235–0912.
