UPDATED: Fields Closed This Weekend; Senator Menendez and Red Cross Discuss Flood Relief Efforts

Democratic Senator Robert Menendez visited flooded Ridgewood on Friday morning to express his hope that President Obama would provide federal money to help pay for the destruction, should Governor Christie ask for a presidential declaration.

During his visit to on Godwin Avenue, Menendez learned of the Red Cross' procedures and ongoing efforts to fight the floods that have decimated towns in Passaic County, including Wayne, Little Falls, Pompton Lakes, Pequaneck and Lodi.

Northern New Jersey Chapter CEO Ray Shepherd said the organization has seen a few evacuations but "but most people have chosen to stay in their homes so far.” He expects numbers to rise as the rivers crest.

Christie declared a State of Emergency and says the National Guard and State Police are available to aid in the flood response.

Ridgewood itself was not immune to the . Robb Pavlick, the response manager for the North Jersey chapter, said the Ho-Ho-Kus Brook may have broken its banks but damage was only "minor" and largely restricted to flooded parking lots, fields and basements.

"No homes are threatened," he said. "But it was a little worse than expected," Pavlick admitted of the floods in the region, adding that he expects it will look similar to the March storms of 2010, where 5,000 homes could see water in basements.

Lt. Chris Duflocq of the Ridgewood Fire Department said that firefighters made "about 55 storm-related calls" since the early hours of Friday. Duflocq said that only about ten of those calls were in the viscinity of Overbrook, North Irving and Warren Place, areas traditionally hit hard by flooding. "Most of those residents already have pumps and are used to this," he said.

The most common calls, he said, were throughout parts of town not traditionally hit with flooding. "Not our usual customers," he said.

"With 60 inches of snow melt with a frost level and the five inches of rain . . . the ground was saturated," which led to basement flooding he said. "The ground just couldn't take it."

Duflocq said the department has been shutting off utilities and circuits and began pumping basements once the waters began receding Saturday.

Fields in Ridgewood took a major beating as a result of the raging brook. The southern end of Veterans Field has been under considerable water and the high school fields have been closed for the weekend due to flood damage.

Sports groups have been notified as to the closing, school officials say and fields are expected to be back in use on Monday. Police have been alerted as to the closings,Village Manager Ken Gabbert said.

Gabbert said the fields are "very wet and silty" but cleanup efforts "are going well" and there is no flooding in the current forecast.

Dr. Daniel Fishbein, the schools superintendent did not respond to requests for comment Friday afternoon but neighbors of the affected fields said in communications with Fishbein, they were told costs for cleanup would be approximately $3,700.

The fields, they were reportedly told, will be tested for environmental damage once cleaned, and the DEP-required landscaping will be repaired.

Stevens Field plantings suffered scour and displaced trees after the storms from Sunday and Monday.

Residents rallied to near the Ho-Ho-Kus Brook in 2010, saying crumb rubber could be easily displaced and fall into the brook in times of flooding. The turf was approved, when the DEP granted a hardship waiver in May. Village Engineer Chris Rutishauser endorsed the project. Rutishauser said the storm water catch basin has increased capacity for handling floods in the area as a result of the turfing.

Residents near the field also said despite the fields being closed, youth were spotted on the slick turf despite the apparent danger. Eyewitnesses report no personnel is monitoring the sites to keep anyone out. Fishbein, in communication with residents, said the district did not have the resources to station personnel.

Forecasts predicted Ridgewood would receive around three inches of rain from Thursday into Friday and that's just what happened, including a two-hour span of about an inch of rain between midnight and 2 p.m. Friday.

The Ho-Ho-Kus Brook broke its banks by about a foot-and-a-half and the Saddle River by roughly two feet. Rivers are likely to crest Saturday night into early Sunday morning, Shepherd said.

"We've been busy all day," Duflocq said. "We want people to have safe lives and we want to help when we can help them. That's what we care about," Duflocq said.

[Editor's Note: A previous version indicated the DEP granted a waiver for the fields based on safety; a hardship waiver instead was granted. The correcion has been made. Story last updated Saturday af 10 p.m.]