Updated 12:30 p.m. Tuesday: Teaneck firefighters responded to more than 338 calls related to Hurricane Irene through noon Tuesday, including fires, gas leaks and car crashes, according to the fire chief.

“There were several fires and near fires, that were successfully extinguished due to the rapid response of the Fire Department,” Fire Chief Anthony Verley said in a press release.

Among the more serious calls firefighters handled were two car crashes. In one, a woman drove into a utility pole at Queen Anne Road and West Englewood Avenue, bringing down live wires.

“We also had a vehicle drive into a building and plunge into an oil change pit,” Verley said.

On Margaret Street, a firefighter had to guard a live wire for more than 18 hours because no PSE&G help was available, Verley said.

Small fires broke out at 647 Cedar Lane and a Baptist Church on Teaneck Road.

“These were electrical failures due to partial power outages, which can be extremely dangerous and damage electronic equipment and heavy duty motors,” the chief said.

Firefighters also had to face dangerous gas leaks.

“We had several basements with gas concentrations approaching dangerous limits,” Verley said.

The following update on water issues were provided by the fire chief:

- We are presently evaluating water problems, and ensuring the safety of the occupants.

- If necessary we will shut off basement utilities to prevent fire hazards from the rising water.

- We do not pump out sewerage, it damages our pumps, a plumber or drain

  service will be needed to alleviate this problem

- We have a limited number of pumps, and manpower.

- Our pumps work with water levels above 3 inches, below that level, they will

  will not work. A wet/dry vac, works well for this level of water.

 

 

 

Updated 5:30 a.m. Tuesday: Up to 2,000 customers were without power in Teaneck, according to the PSE&G outage map.

Queen Anne Road at West Englewood Avenue was closed, as was Cedar Lane, near Red Road.

PSE&G has restored power to more than 610,000 customers statewide, the company said in a statement released early Tuesday. A flooded power substation in New Milford has contributed to some of Teaneck's outages, county officials said.

"Crews are working to dry flooded substations so they can put circuits from those stations back on line, and flood waters are preventing crews from entering a number of other areas," PSE&G said.

Around 99,600 customers remain in the dark statewide, PSE&G said.

"The company expects restoration of all customers within the next 4 to 6 days," a company statement said.

--------------------------------------------------

 

Updated 5:12 p.m. Monday: Residents at Heritage Pointe on Frank Burr Boulevard were evacuated Monday after the facility lost power, police said.

The Teaneck Volunteer Ambulance Corps and Teaneck Fire Department were called to help evacuate residents, according to an official. TVAC handled five people who needed assistance, police said.

A spokeswoman for the assisted living facility could not be reached Monday night. Additional details were not immediately available.

--------------------------------------------------

 

Updated 10 a.m. Monday: Thousands of Teaneck residents remained without power late Monday morning, officials said.

Deputy Police Chief Robert Carney said "large percentages" of the town were without power Monday. Several major roads were also blocked, including:

• Cedar Lane, between Red Road and Grange Road
• Sections of Garrison and Sussex
• Queen Anne Road at West Englewood Avenue
• Teaneck Road at Garden Street

Around 205,000 customers statewide were without power, PSE&G said in a statement released Monday morning. The company had restored more than 462,000 customers, the statement said. While crews were seen working around town, PSE&G said outages caused by flooded substations could take days to fix.

PSE&G lowered its official tally of customers without power in town from up to 10,000 to up to 5,000. Company officials have said they cannot give town-specific outage information in a major statewide incident.

The town hall was operating on normal business hours Monday. Officials asked residents to report downed trees to the DPW at 201-837-1600 ext. 1700 from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., or to Teaneck Police at 201-837-2600 after hours. PSE&G can be reached at 1-800-436-7734.

--------------------------------------------------

 

Updated 1 a.m. Monday: Large portions of Teaneck remained in the dark late Sunday into early Monday.

Power was out along River Road, from Cedar Lane to New Bridge Road, and out along Teaneck Road, from Tryon Avenue to the Teaneck Armory. Houses along Windsor Road were also out, among many other locations around town.

A section of Cedar Lane was also closed, near Prince Street, for a pole leaning over Red Road.

PSE&G was still reporting anywhere between 5,000 and 10,000 customers without power in Teaneck. Utility crews were seen working early Monday along Teaneck Road, but the company said outages caused by flooding could take days to fix.

Scroll down to read storm updates from Sunday in chronological order.

--------------------------------------------------

 

Updated 8 p.m. Sunday: PSE&G says customers could be without power for up to seven days, with outages caused by flooding taking the longest to repair.

“While the majority of customers will be restored within 48 hours, customers should be prepared for potentially lengthy outages of up to seven days,” the company said in a statement Sunday night.

Some outages in Teaneck have been attributed to a washed out electricity substation in New Milford. Police said most of Teaneck was without power Sunday.

“The number of outages continues to climb as flooding impacts the region,” the utility company said. Around 375,000 PSE&G customers statewide were without power Sunday night.

More flooding could hit the area as the Oradell Dam is expected to overflow at midnight, Bergen County Emergency Management Coordinator Lt. Dwane Razzetti said at a briefing earlier today. At a press conference Sunday night, Gov. Chris Christie said more power outages were possible in North Jersey.

Evacuations in Teaneck are unlikely, Razzetti said. However, Teaneck Police alerted already flooded-residents on Old New Bridge Road that waters are expected to rise. 

--------------------------------------------------

 

 

Updated 6:37 p.m. Sunday: Two houses were hit by falling trees Sunday night. The National Weather Service issued a tropical storm warning for the area, with gusts of 25 mph possible and a chance of rain.

Large trees crashed into houses on Longfellow and Oakdene Avenues around 6:15 p.m., and Teaneck emergency responders were continuing to deal with downed wires and branches around town.

Queen Anne Road remained closed near West Englewood Avenue, after a woman crashed into a utility pole earlier today. PSE&G has said they cannot provide any specific information on outages in Teaneck.

--------------------------------------------------

 

Updated 5:03 p.m. Sunday: Holy Name Medical Center is running off a generator as large portions of Teaneck have lost power, officials said Sunday. 

There are no current plans to evacuate the medical center and officials are in touch with Public Service Electric & Gas, said Bergen County Emergency Management Coordinator Lt. Dwane Razzetti. Razzetti updated local officials on the storm in a conference call late this afternoon.

The Oradell Reservoir is expected to overflow at midnight, which could lead to more flooding south of the area, county officials have said.

Power outages are widespread in Teaneck, according to local police. 

State Senator Loretta Weinberg, who was on the call, has asked for more information on the outage and any potential evacuations. The exact cause was unclear, but Bergen County Chief of Staff Jeanne Baratta said utility representatives would be calling Weinberg with an update. Flooded substations and downed trees have been blamed for most of the county's power outages.

A substation in New Milford was knocked offline, leading to outages in towns including Teaneck, Razzetti said.

"When it gets turned on a lot of people will be restored, but it's not an easy turn on," he said of the substation. The Hillsdale substation was also flooded, impacting a large swath of the county.

PSE&G spokeswoman Karen A. Johnson told Patch the utility could not provide "town by town info," during a large statewide issue.

Razzetti said evacuations in Teaneck are not likely because enough space exists between the Hackensack River and most flood-prone areas. Teaneck Police have alerted residents on Old New Bridge Road, which is already flooded, of the chance for more water.

The call, led by County Executive Kathleen Donovan, brought together a team of officials, including New Jersey State Police, county police and health officials.

"We're all in this together," Donovan said from the county's emergency communications center in Mahwah.

County Police Chief Brian Higgins said his officers were ready to assist local officials. County police have specialized water search units and can help man road closures, he said.

The impact of the outages was being seen around Teaneck Sunday. Traffic lights were out along a section of Cedar Lane and at the busy Teaneck Road and Tryon Avenue intersection.

The latest National Weather Service forecast for tonight: Tropical storm conditions possible. A slight chance of showers before 8pm. Cloudy during the early evening, then gradual clearing, with a low around 58. West wind 28 to 33 mph decreasing to between 10 and 15 mph. Winds could gust as high as 45 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

--------------------------------------------------

 

 

Updated 3:33 p.m. Sunday: 60,000 Bergen County residents are without power and that number is expected to increase, according to Jeanne Baratta, chief of staff at the county executive's office. 

Residents are reporting outages around Teaneck, with PSE&G's official tally at anywhere between 5,001 - 10,000 in town. 

Police said power outages were widespread around town. County officials also said the number of people in the dark is likely to increase. 

"Most of the town has no power," police Lt. Tanya Balser said late Sunday afternoon. 

Flooding is also being reported around town. The Degraw Avenue ramp to I-95 was flooded and police were in contact with residents along flooded Old New Bridge Road and Riverview Avenue. 

A woman drove into a pole earlier in the day on Queen Anne Road, taking down wires and a transformer, authorities said. The road remained closed near West Englewood Avenue Sunday afternoon as crews made repairs. 

Residents reporting power outages are asked to call 1-800-436-PSEG. 

There's a chance of rain later today and a tropical storm warning remains in effect. Wind gusts up to 36 mph are possible, according to the National Weather Service. 

--------------------------------------------------

 

Updated 1:18 p.m. Sunday: Queen Anne Road is closed near West Englewood Avenue after a car apparently hit a utility pole, bringing down wires. 

Police said it appeared a vehicle struck the pole. An SUV with heavy front-end damage was parked at the scene. 

--------------------------------------------------

 

Updated 12:10 p.m. Sunday: Flooding could hit Teaneck tomorrow, a Bergen County official says. Click to read the full report on the county's flooding predictions. 

--------------------------------------------------

 

Updated 9:45 a.m. Sunday: Teaneck residents woke up to some power outages and flooding Sunday morning after Irene arrived overnight.

Teaneck police said no major storm-related incidents or injuries were reported overnight.

Downed limbs around town are causing scattered power outages, police said.  Public Service Electric & Gas reports up to 2,000 people are without power in Teaneck.

Flooding has made some roads impassable, including Pomander Walk, areas around Votee Park and around Riverview Avenue, police Sgt. George Molina said Sunday morning. Degraw Avenue was closed in Leonia and Teaneck because of flooding, Leonia police said.  Fort Lee Road in Leonia near Overpeck Park was also flooded and State Police blocked the Exit 70 ramp. 

The Teaneck Public Library is closed today and will likely reopen at 9 a.m. Monday, Library Director Mike McCue said.

Although Irene has weakened to a tropical storm, forecasters warn it could still cause damage.

Tropical storm and Hurricane conditions are possible until 4 p.m. today, with wind gusts reaching 55 mph, according to the National Weather Service.

--------------------------------------------------

 

 

Updated 1:56 a.m. Sunday: Flooding, downed trees and limited power outages were being reported around town, as Hurricane Irene began hammering Teaneck early Sunday. 

According to Public Service Electric & Gas, Teaneck had only limited outages. A reader reported power going out around Taft Road. The utility company had about 89,000 customers without power, but mostly in central and southern New Jersey. 

"The number of outages continues to climb as Hurricane Irene moves north," a utility company statement said.

Township emergency responders were dealing with downed trees and wires, and flooding was reported near Forest Avenue and Windsor Road. 

New Jersey State Police urged people to stay off the roads and speed restrictions were in effect along the New Jersey Turnpike. 

--------------------------------------------------

 

Updated 10:02 p.m. Saturday: Police staffing has been doubled in Teaneck as Hurricane Irene moves into the area, officials said late Saturday night. 

Old New Bridge Road residents have also been advised to voluntarily evacuate due to flooding, Township Manager William Broughton said in a statement. Broughton also took part in two conference calls with Gov. Chris Christie. 

Police dispatch staff has also been doubled. 

Additional fire, health and buildings department staff are also at the ready, he said. 

An emergency generator has also been setup to power the Municipal Complex. 

Weather conditions are expected to worsen tonight, according to forecasts. The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for Bergen County until 5 a.m. 

--------------------------------------------------

Original story: Teaneck authorities are prepared to respond with a coordinated effort in the event Hurricane Irene causes damage in town, officials said.

Township departments have taken a range of actions to prepare for the storm, from the Department of Public Works clearing storm drains in flood-prone areas, to having extra town staff standing by, said Township Manager William Broughton.

“Teaneck is well prepared,” Broughton said Friday. “We’ve been preparing for a coordinated response.”

With last year’s storm taking down 300 trees in town, one of the main concerns for officials are fallen trees and branches. Both private and township tree removal crews are on stand-by, Broughton said.

Departments are also making sure all vehicles are fueled and equipment tested before the storm is forecasted to move in. Pumps and emergency generators have also been tested.

The Teaneck Volunteer Ambulance Corps is also prepared for the storm. Four ambulances will be fully staffed with crews in-house starting Saturday night through Monday, said TVAC Capt. Michael Rothschild.

"We have made provisions for our members to ride extended shifts and have prepared by ordering additional medical supplies in anticipation of the storm," Rothschild said. "We knew this was coming so our plans were already being executed last week. It's a waiting game at this point."

TVAC is also in contact with police, fire and emergency management officials, Rothschild said. Residents are reminded to only use 911 in true emergencies. Non-emergency calls can be directed to police at 201-837-2600.

Residents were notified through a reverse 911 call from the police department and hurricane safety tips have been posted on the town website. The Township recently held an emergency management meeting and is in contact with the county officials, Broughton said

Gas station lines were packed Friday afternoon and an employee at Ludewig’s Hardware said the store had been busy all day. 

Check back for storm updates through the weekend. Follow Teaneck Patch on Facebook and Twitter for immediate updates. 

Article updated at 11:47 a.m. Saturday.