$10,000 Worth of Property Stolen from Lawrence Twp. Family Left Homeless by Hurricane Irene Flood Waters

The Lawrence Township family left homeless after flood waters from Hurricane Irene collapsed the basement wall of their rental house recently discovered than someone had entered the condemned residence and stolen thousands of dollars worth of their possessions.

An estimated $10,000 worth of property – including bracelets, earrings and other gold jewelry, two laptop computers, a combination printer/scanner/fax machine, and tools like saws, drills and a ladder – were reported to be missing, according to Lt. Charles Edgar, spokesman for the Lawrence Township Police Department

Edgar confirmed that at about 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 9, police were summoned to the home in the 200 block of Bakers Basin Road by Mario Calero, who had gone to check on the residence and found that items were missing.

Calero’s family rented the house and had to be rescued on Aug. 28 from Hurricane Irene’s rising flood waters by volunteer firefighters using boats.

Township inspectors later declared the building unsafe for occupation because the flood waters had collapsed part of the foundation and basement wall. The family has been staying with relatives ever since.

“I can’t work. My tools are all underwater. I’m in construction by trade,” Calero told a Patch reporter in the days after the flooding.

Now, those tools have been stolen.

Edgar said township police are still investigating and ask anyone with information about the crime to call Detective Robert Potter at (609) 896-1111.