Storm Soaks Summit In Rain, Emergency Calls

SUMMIT, NJ - Severe rain, flash flooding and stranded cars made for an active Wednesday night for Summit first responders as the remnants of Hurricane Barry rolled through town.

The Summit Fire Department responded to over 50 incidents in a five hour period during and after a severe thunderstorm hit the area and dumped heavy rain shortly after 7 p.m., officials said.

During last night’s torrential storm, Mountain Valley Emergency Communications Center handled an 1,016 non-emergency and 911 phone calls between 7 p.m. and 1 a.m. Within that same time period, 323 police, fire and EMS calls were dispatched to aid residents and businesses, including self-initiated calls by these agencies as well during the storm, officials noted.

Flash flooding on Hobart Avenue, Morris Avenue and Tulip Street stranded several motorists in cars and the fire department needed to rescue the drivers and many residents reported flooding problems in and around their houses, the worst with nearly five feet of water in a basement, officials said. The Springfield Fire Department assisted with water rescues on Morris and Essex Turnpike. New Providence, Mountainside and Scotch Plains fire departments provided station coverage.

The Summit Fire Department spent several hours pumping water from houses and businesses.

Other actions:

• While there were no significant power outages reported, there were multiple reports of transformers and wires arching and burning and Jersey Central Power & Light was called in to make repairs.
• The fire department also responded to numerous fire alarm activations in houses and businesses, which were caused by water leaks or power spikes in the area.
• There were also several calls for an odor of natural gas along Morris Avenue. PSE&G was requested to respond and found gas venting from a vent stack along the road.
• During the storm, a water main break in Chatham caused low water pressure in a large area of the city. The fire department checked fire hydrants in the affected area to ensure adequate water pressure in case of a fire.

Despite the severity of the storm, officials noted no injuries to firefighters or residents were reported.

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