Berkeley Heights Township : Storm Cleanup Ongoing, Potential Power Outages Coming Around Union Ave

Press release from the Berkeley Heights Township:

July 7, 2021

Update as of 3:14 pm - Controlled outage has not occurred yet. We are awaiting a better timeframe from JCP&L.

Tree Reminder: Residents who have downed trees on their property are responsible for their own cleanup. If there is a broken or leaning tree that you would like to request be taken down on your private property, reminder that you must get approval; you can submit a tree permit request online here: https://www.sdlportal.com/towns/nj/union/berkeleyheightstwp/requests/zoning and select "Tree Permit" from the "Choose type of work planned" dropdown menu. If the tree is on Township property, please send requests with photos to trees@bhtwp.com.

Update as of 9:42 am – JCP&L needs to start a controlled power outage around 11 am today in the neighborhoods around Union Avenue. New Providence has two broken poles that need to be repaired on or around Union Ave. Neighborhoods around there likely will be affected. Duration as of now is unknown. 

Cleanup continues after Tuesday night’s storm, which left in its wake a few downed trees, tree limbs and a bit of a mess, overall.

The Berkeley Heights Police Department and Department of Public Works crews have been working through the night. BHPD has been on-scene to the three locations where there are tree limbs on power lines, and has reported them all to JCP&L. The BHPD requested an expedited response from JCP&L for road closures or other safety concerns due to power lines and trees down. Our DPW teams was at work removing trees and limbs overnight - in between lightning strikes in some cases - and has been in communication with PD throughout the storm. DPW cannot remove any trees that lying on power lines; JCP&L must contract out with their own tree company to remove those trees.

As of 8:30 am Wednesday, there are three locations at which trees are lying on power lines; we are waiting for JCP&L to send tree-trimming crews out:

• Hillside Avenue
• Ralph Place
• Near intersection of Cornell and Oakland

Any residents who do not have power need to report it to JCP&L directly online.  There are currently 9 homes without power in Berkeley Heights.  For hazardous situations, call 1-888-544-4877 (1-888-LIGHTSS) immediately.  

Please DO NOT GO NEAR any downed power line; live wires are extremely dangerous.

Residents who have downed trees on their property are responsible for their own cleanup. If there is a broken or leaning tree that you would like to request be taken down, reminder that you must get approval from our zoning officer. Please send all requests to trees@bhtwp.com.

Please continually check in at TAPinto Berkeley Heights for more information as well. 

This press release was produced by the Berkeley Heights Township. The views expressed here are the author’s own.