NJ - Parts of Bound Brook, South Bound Brook, Manville under mandatory evacuation order

Parts of Bound Brook, South Bound Brook, Manville under mandatory evacuation order

Published: Sunday, August 28, 2011, 1:23 PM     Updated: Sunday, August 28, 2011, 1:34 PM

By Lisa Rose/The Star-Ledger

Enlarge Mark Dye / For the Star Ledger A snapped pole at Howland Avenue accross the street from 519 Ocean Boulevard where it is believed a tornado took the roof off of the complex during hurricane Irene early Sunday morning in Long Branch on August 28, 2011. 1/8/2011 PHOTO BY MARK DYE/FOR THE STAR LEDGER Wind and possible tornado damage gallery (8 photos)

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SOMERSET COUNTY — Mandatory evacuations are being conducted in low-lying areas of Bound Brook and South Bound Brook. While the town’s East Street floodgate is holding up, water is seeping through another floodgate at South Main Street. The gate is still under construction and may fail when the Raritan River crests within the next 12 hours.
“Water is coming in under the gate,” says Linda Van Zandt, director of public information for Somerset County. “That’s really worrying. People need to leave.”
A sinkhole has developed in Bound Brook on Church Street but crews cannot address the issue until the flood has receded.
Emergency officials are not expecting the river to reach its record height of 42-plus feet, set in 1999 after the area was hit by tropical storm Floyd.
There is still concern, however, that businesses and homes in downtown Bound Brook are vulnerable in Irene’s wake, according to Doug Doorknocker, director of emergency management in Somerset County.
“We could see damage similar to Floyd,” says Doorknocker. “The river continues to rise.”
The Raritan River was already at a flood level — 28 feet — by 4 a.m. today, said Bound Brook Mayor Carey Pilato.

Video: Streets on Bay Head flood after Hurricane Irene A residential area at the intersection of Park Avenue and Holly Avenue in Bay Head, NJ, floods with about a foot of water from a combination of heavy rains from Hurricane Irene and a high tide on the Bay on Sunday. (Frances Micklow/The Star-Ledger) Watch video

"The rise of the water has certainly begun," he said then.
Pilato said many of the roads in his borough are blocked by downed trees and debris.
In Manville, residents of low-lying sections are being ordered to evacuate. They are all gathering at a town VFW hall, as there’s a travel ban in the municipality that is set to expire at 6 a.m. on Monday.
“Manville has become an island,” says Van Zandt.
Throughout Somerset County, all major crossings over the Raritan and Millstone rivers are closed.
The county has experienced “unprecedented flooding” in towns that are not typically affected by surging storm waters, says Doug Vornlocker.
“Somerville, North Plainfield and Green Brook have widespread road closures,” Vornlocker explains. “We’ve never seen anything like it.”
Staff writer Eugene Paik contributed to this report.