Electric power was restored to Knowlton residents by 4 p.m. Tuesday, about 22 hours after a storm ripped across North Warren County, shredding power lines, downing trees and dropping marble-size hail.
The July 12 storm prompted the issuance of a tornado warning by the National Weather Service at just after 5:45 p.m., expiring at 6:15 p.m. Knowlton Mayor Adele Starrs credited the Nixle emergency alert system for notifying residents of the warning.
“I am grateful for our Nixle emergency communication system,” Starrs said. “Our township invested in it a few years ago, and this was the perfect illustration of how useful it is.”
Starrs said that within seconds 2,346 residents were alerted to the National Weather Service tornado warning by phone and 1,407 by email, which advised them to take shelter immediately. With a population of about 3,000, at least a vast majority of residents received the alerts, taking into account some people getting the alerts by both methods.
Fallen trees and downed power lines were reported throughout Knowlton and surrounding areas, though Knowlton appeared to bear the brunt of the fast-moving storm. Several trees were reported having been ripped out, which blocked portions of Simpson Road.
The Garden State Heirloom Seed Society History Museum on Delaware Road was minding it own business when a decades-old tree was ripped out of the ground, causing substantial damage to the roof. The tree also took power lines to the area with it.
By Wednesday the Department of Public Works had cleared all the roads within the township and continued to remove branches and limbs still near roadways.
Starrs said she urges any residents who have not signed up for the Nixle alert to do so. In addition to weather alerts, users can also be notified of alerts involving crime, traffic and missing persons as well as other important local announcements. To sign up, go to nixle.com and enter the Knowlton Zip Code of 07832. You can choose to receive alerts via your phone and/or email.
Joe brings decades of journalism experience to the Ridge View Echo, covering everything from local school boards to the U.S. Supreme Court. A former National Law Journal editor and Columbia Law School press officer, he now enjoys telling community stories in Blairstown, where he lives with his wife, Rose, and their two dachshunds.
- Joe Phalon, Contributing Writerhttps://ridgeviewecho.com/author/joe-phalon-contributing-writer/
- Joe Phalon, Contributing Writerhttps://ridgeviewecho.com/author/joe-phalon-contributing-writer/
- Joe Phalon, Contributing Writerhttps://ridgeviewecho.com/author/joe-phalon-contributing-writer/
- Joe Phalon, Contributing Writerhttps://ridgeviewecho.com/author/joe-phalon-contributing-writer/
