When Superstorm Sandy Hit Jersey, Ardmore Stepped Up

ARDMORE, PA — Superstorm Sandy's impact on the region was much less significant than the impact our neighbors in New Jersey felt.

Ten years ago, the storm ravaged New Jersey, destroying homes, businesses, infrastructure and more.

While Southeastern Pennsylvania was largely spared from the horrific ramification of the storm, its residents saw a need to support those most impacted.

That's when the Merion Fire Company of Ardmore and the Ardmore Rotary Club stepped in.

Ryan Tomkinson, President of the Ardmore Rotary Club and a board member of the Merion Fire Company of Ardmore, spoke with Patch about how the community stepped in to aid New Jersey residents.

The fire company in the past had provided aid to regions impacted by natural disasters, such as New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina.

So with a history of helping affected regions, Tomkinson said Chief Thomas Hayden had something in back of his mind saying they needed to do something when Sandy hit.

"It had been a handful of years since any major storms," Tomkinson said.

And with New Jersey being severly impacted by Sandy, residents who grew up vacationing at the shore, who have family and friends there, and even owned properties there stepped in to provide assistance.

The fire company, rotary club, businesses owners, and residents put out a mass call for donations to be dropped off at the fire department, Tomkinson said.

Clothes, cleaning supplies, diapers, feminine hygiene products, and more were among the items donated.

"There was a ton of stuff delivered to the fire station," Tomkinson said.

One supporter owned an appliance store, he said, and donated box trucks to help deliver the goods.

A box full of items was taken to New Jersey and donated to the Toms River community.

Then another push for donations came.

This time, Tomkinson said two or three trucks packed full of donated items were soon on their way to New Jersey.

"Fire chiefs have their own network of contacts," Tomkinson said when recalling their decision on where items should be donated. "We tried to find out where it needed to go and to make sure it was dropped off in the right place and distributed to the right people.

It was a Thursday night when they drove the trucks down to New Jersey, and Tomkinson compared the scenes he saw to what we've seen in Ukraine as the Russians attack the nation.

"Once you came to the pine barrens it was completely black, no power," he said. "It looked like a Third World country. You couldn't get over the bridges."

They made plans to go to a fire house for drop off of the items, but when they showed up it was empty.

"You could see the water levels on the walls," Tomkinson said.

The water lines were about a tall as a person, he recalled.

With boxes of donated items, Tomkinson and others worked to find out where they could drop off the times.

Eventually, they made their way to the Pleasant Plains Volunteer Fire Department.

"We showed up at the fire station, maybe 10 at night," he said.

A woman answered the door.

"She basically told us to go away thinking we were looking for donations," he said.

But Tomkinson and crew told her they had just driven from Philadelphia with loads of supplies.

She and another woman at the station began weeping and hugged Tomkinson and others.

"These people were blown away," he said. "She said they gave out their last diapers that day."

Firefighters, EMTs, and others at the fire department were thrilled.

Former Pleasant Plains Fire Department Chief Brian Doyle the fire hall was converted into a donation center where residents impacted could collect supplies.

"We had clothing, nonperishable food, bottled water, diapers, baby wipes, cleaning supplies, and pots and pans," he told Patch. "Obviously, everything was free to whoever walked through our doors, no questions asked."

He said the amount of support and donations the community got from other fire companies, residents, businesses, and organizations was overwhelming.

In addition to donated goods, Hayden was able to secure several thousands of dollars in Lowe's gift cards that impacted communities were able to use at their discretion for repairs and replacements.

Tomkinson said thanks to the fire department, rotary club, businesses, and residents, residents in New Jersey got assistance faster than would be possible if it were up to the government alone.

To this date, Tomkinson said the Pleasant Plains Volunteer Fire Department extends an invitation to their annual barbecue to the Ardmore community.