High winds knocked down six utility poles on New Street in Sea Bright, forcing the closure of Ocean Avenue. (Photo by Dustin Racioppi; click to enlarge)
By DUSTIN RACIOPPI
A young woman suffered minor injuries in Sea Bright today as high winds knocked down six utility poles on New Street.
The unidentified child suffered an electrical shock inside a residence, said Read Murphy, a councilman and volunteer responder.
A reverse 911 alert also reported that a large amount of fuel oil is running into the borough’s sewer system and the adjacent Shrewsbury River. A Monmouth County hazmat team has been called to the scene. redbankgreen could not immediately confirm that information.
“We’ve got a total mess down here,” said Murphy, whose son, Chad, is the fire chief.
Traffic on Ocean Avenue around 12:15p. (Photo by Dustin Racioppi; click to enlarge)
Emergency personnel from Sea Bright, Monmouth Beach and the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Mobile Command Unit responded to New Street, where three poles on the south end of the street could be seen lying horizontally around noon. They were in the process of evacuating the street at 1:45.
While fire, police and EMS personnel, in addition to JCP&L employees, worked to secure the area, a U.S. National Park Service employee directed traffic at the foot of the Rumson-Sea Bright Bridge, where the traffic light went out.
The bridge and Ocean Avenue are now closed to traffic.
The road closure is expected to last “all day, at least,” Murphy said.
Rumson fire and police were called in for additional help.
Stay tuned to redbankgreen as more information becomes available.
