Flood Gates Still Being Fixed In Hoboken, City Says

HOBOKEN, NJ — As forecasters predicted, local streets flooded last Thursday when a downpour soaked Hoboken close to high tide.

At least one flood gate failed to open during the flash flooding (see photo above). Later that day, Patch reached out to the city to find out why.

Mayor Ravi Bhalla later sent a message to residents, saying a lack of battery power called the malfunction.

"We received reports from the Office of Emergency Management that some of our automated floodgates did not deploy as intended due to insufficient battery," he wrote. "The manufacturer has already been alerted and will be on site to inspect the affected gates and install upgraded batteries and other enhancements, which should hopefully resolve the issue."

A city spokeswoman said Thursday that the city was told it will take two weeks to fix the issue.

Workers were seen tending to the flood gates on Thursday afternoon:

The flood gates have failed in the past, as well. See this 2023 story: Why Didn't Hoboken's Futuristic Flood Gates Go Down?

Bhalla said in his message, "In all cases where automatic deployment did not occur, the gates were lowered manually by city crews to block flooded intersections and roadways."

Bhalla complained that some people raised gates back up themselves or pushed barricades out of the roadway during the deluge.

Millions Of Gallons Removed

On a positive note, according to the mayor, "The H1 and H5 flood pump stations were online and fully operational throughout the event. The H1 Pump Station ran for approximately six hours and pumped about 12 million gallons of water, while the H5 Pump Station operated for around five hours and pumped approximately 10 million gallons.

"Despite these efforts, and our three resiliency parks filling to capacity at 3 million gallons total, several low-lying streets had to be closed for your safety."

Residents reported flooded corners all over town. Even some uptown streets that usually remain dry were seen flooding or puddling, thanks, in part, to fall leaves that came down during the storm:

The city of Hoboken issued its first Nixle alert to residents at 3:22 p.m. Thursday saying, "Barricades have been deployed. Do not walk or drive around barricades or through flooded areas. Do not attempt to drive around lowered gates."

The city later told residents that some roads near the city's southern entrance were blocked. They reopened Friday morning.

A flood advisory had been issued for 1-5 p.m. Thursday. A high tide of 4.2 feet was expected at 3:38 p.m.

Hoboken is currently replacing its century-old infrastructure and constructing federally funded seawalls to prevent storm surges.

See past flash flood coverage on Hoboken Patch: Hoboken Streets Flood During Coastal Storm (Photos)