Real Cleanup Begins in Wake of Irene

The has receded but Ridgewood residents and workers are not out of the fray yet – dangers are still present in the form of polluted water, live wires, and trees ripped from their roots.

Many are still without power and homes and basements across the village are soaked. Still, with the worst over the village will soon be transitioning to the service phase of its disaster management effort.

"The services phase within the next 24 hours will probably kick in. Right now we're still in the public safety phase," Mayor Keith Killion said in an interview with Patch outside flooded Village Hall early Sunday evening.

Hundreds of cellars need to be pumped, intersections and lights have to be brought up, traffic regulated, and streets cleared. All roads are currently open just hours after East Ridgewood Avenue was closed by the Duck Pond, East Glen, Linwood, Grove, Irving and several other roads were shuttered.

Gawkers were amazed by the awesome power of the Ho-Ho-Kus Brook and Saddle River, which merged in the morning and forced evacuations of around 25 homes but had receded by late afternoon.

Even with roads open and flood waters receding, hazards are still absolutely present, according to the mayor, a former police officer who lived through Ridgewood's most devastating storm, Floyd.

"We're having a lot of trees coming down now. The fire and police departments are trying to secure roads, tend to live wires and clear falling trees. Residents should stay indoors unless absolutely necessary. Just because the waters are receding doesn't mean we're not facing dangerous situations," he said.

"If it's a real emergency, call 911," he said to residents. "But if not, call central dispatch." Lists are being formulated and cases will be dealt by severity and prioritized, officials have said.

PSE&G working on the power outages, no timetable yet

There's been no word from PSE&G on when power will be restored to those without, somewhere between 500 and 2,000 residents according to the outage page.

"I'm sure the crews are so inundated they're just going from one to the other," the mayor said of PSE&G. He said the response is better than he witnessed at Floyd and in last year's destructive wind storm, which left the village without power for several days.

No "town-to-town" response data is available according to a PSE&G spokesperson, but trucks are seen throughout village neighborhoods. Residents told Patch they've been told it could be anywhere between an hour and 48 hours until they get power back. It's better than other towns, where the return of power could be several days to a week away.

"The response is a lot better than Floyd and even last year," said Killion of PSE&G. "I think everyone has learned from their mistakes and that's a good thing."

Workers and residents demonstrate 'Ridgewood character,' says mayor

The mayor credited stronger preparation and a dedicated, professional staff for mitigating the damaging effects of Irene, which departed in the late morning after gusts of wind blew trees left and right, onto minivans, houses and roads.

"When the chips are down, everybody in every division chips in," Killion said. "I saw [the] water department, police, fire, engineering–everybody trying to save buildings. This is certainly a fantastic workforce." 

The emergency responders were busy with the streets department saving residents with loaders and residents, according to eyewitness reports and officials. Hundreds of calls came in and they'll continue to pour in throughout the night and into Monday.

"A lot of them were life-saving situations," Killion said of the rescue efforts. "It's just a team-effort, everybody came together. These guys put themselves in harm's way not just to save people, but remember–this water is polluted. You don't know what it has in it."

"Even if you're not in a bucket loader just wading through trying to get someone out of a car, you take a chance at catching hepatitis. This is what they signed on for and they've proven their worth," he added.

Killion reported morale was good and their primary focus remained how to get the village back operational and ensuring safety. The fire department will have its calendar full next week pumping basements in all parts of Ridgewood.

The mayor also had a message for residents: "I just want to tell the residents that all through this they've been great. The residents I've spoken to at Lake Village Hall have been understanding. This is what makes Ridgewood one of the greatest towns on earth. People coming together, whether it be employees or residents."

When will the water leave?

The water could be gone soon, but its effects will remain for a few days. Killion speculated that based on his experience, when the water starts receding, it recedes fast. A lake during the morning, Village Hall was downgraded to a vast pond by the afternoon. Still, the parking lot will not be open tomorrow though Village Hall is expected to be. The first floor suffered extensive water damage.

There's no word on when basements around Meadowbrook and low-lying areas will be pumped out, Killion said.

There's also no word on the extent of damage to the turf fields, which became a water park for some who apparently didn't mind swimming, biking and kayaking in raw sewage.

So long as the turf doesn't rip, it is repairable according to Killion's understanding.

But with complete water immersion and jagged wrinkles, humped wrinkles and a collapsed section of the fence, there's little question that the cleanup cost will be considerable, if even possible. The school board has spent over $50,000 cleaning up the fields in prior storms this year. None were as devastating as Irene.

Tom Kossoff, a neighbor of the high school and a critic of the board's decisions to turf fields in a flood zone, offered only one comment when asked by Patch: "It speaks for itself," he said near the bleachers of RHS Stadium Field. Some 'wrinkles' were jagged, others resembled camel humps. Portions of the inner fence had collapsed and bubbles were poking out from above the deep water.

The bleachers will also likely have to be inspected for erosion, according to the mayor; he said it will probably happen in the next few days.

A damage assessment on erosion from the brook and river bursting banks and merging must still be done as well. Experts have been sent home to recharge, but they'll collect data and study it over the next week.

Graydon likely done for the season

Graydon Pool is also likely done for the season after taking on high water from the brook. It would need to be pumped out and shocked, which would take at least a week.

Still no decision on whether parking will be enforced tomorrow. The underpass of the train station flooded, and train service is still suspended.

Killion said he did not see any water inside the library but there could have been hydraulic pressure that pushed water up.

Businesses spared Irene; village to assess how it did in Irene response

Businesses are still up and running, Killion said. He didn't hear of businesses closed due to power outages and neither did residents of surrounding towns, it seemed. Glen Rock, Hillsdale, Midland Park, Wyckoff and Washington Township residents were just some of the refugees at Starbucks and other businesses nearby. Lines spilled onto the sidewalk and power outlets were in short supply.

Though several business owners reported to Patch that basements need to be pumped out and some boilers are likely to be compromised, the mayor though the CBD's escape was a gift, all things considered.

"The council is overjoyed that we didn't lose power in the Central Business District so the businesses can still operate and not lose money," Killion said. "That is the one good shining thing out of this [storm] that the CBD remained in tact."

Mayor: please stay inside

Killion cautioned that with the heavy winds, there's a fair chance more branches and trees will fall down and wires remain live in various pockets of the village.

"Please stay inside," he said in addressing residents.

No figures on any injuries from residents could be immediately attained. 

Village officials will take an after-action report, which will document what was done and will contain a comprehensive look at the response and what could be improved should another Irene emerge in the future.

For all the details, make sure to head to the Ridgewood Patch Twitter page. We've been updating so frequently I have actually lost sensation in my thumbs.