Fire Department Has Fielded More Than 130 Calls

When Sarah Bailey received a call around noon from a man saying his wife was stuck on Central Avenue, the Summit fire department dispatcher called for backup

Within minutes four firefighters were in dispatch trying to determine which Central Avenue the woman was stuck on. The man only knew his wife was heading to the Summit area and was stuck somewhere en-route.

Luckily, one of the first calls the department made was to New Providence where it was discovered that the woman, driving a red Volvo, was stuck on the Central Avenue bridge in New Providence. The bridge is now closed due to flooding from the Passaic River.

Including this one, the Fire Department has fielded more than 130 calls since Saturday, Chief Joseph Houck said.

Most of the calls have been residential water conditions, he said, including calls Monday morning on Fairview Avenue and Locust Drive.

"People think water in the basement is no big deal. But once the water starts to rise it could place both your hot water heater and furnace in jeopardy," he said.

In the midst of this, Houck said the main frequency the department uses for communication went out on Saturday. Ever since they have been using an alternate frequency to communicate.

The department has also assisted with several of the fallen trees in town, including the one blocking Mountain Avenue. Houck said luckily only four homes lost power as a result of that incident.

But residents on West End Avenue east of Passaic Avenue are not as lucky. Battalion Chief Joseph Wurtzbacher said about 80 households are still without power on West End. The pole that was taken out when a tree there fell is a Verizon pole, he said. Therefore, Verizon must reconstruct a pole before JCP&L can restore power.

Power won't be restored on West End Avenue until Tuesday or Wednesday Wurtzbacher said.