Library May be Used as Overnight Shelter

The Wyckoff Public Library was to remain open until approximately 6:30 p.m. for use as shelter for those residents experiencing power outages.

However, Committeemen Kevin Rooney and Brian Scanlan, who had been manning the Woodland Avenue facility in lieu of regular staff, said the library could re-open this evening if there is a need for overnight shelter. Township officials had planned to provide cots for use in the facility's Monroe Room, which is warm, carpeted and served by its own kitchen and bathrooms. Should residents take up the offer, hot and cold food would be provided in the basement room, Rooney said.

Although the storm closed schools, Town Hall and the library today, emergency management officials had decided to open the building as temporary shelter for the hundreds of residents suffering from a lack of heat and hot water. While many of the outages, due to Rockland Electric substation and transformer failures, were centered in the areas of Russell and Sicomac avenues, power was spotty in the center of the township, as well.

While some residents could be observed making the futile effort of trying to return and take out books, others used the library as a welcome respite from the bitter cold and power outages.

Teenager Charlie Yang, a Chestnut Street resident, said his family lost power at 8 p.m. Thursday.

"Last night was really cold," he said.

Yang said he had gone looking for a library that may be open and was pleased to find the Wyckoff branch welcoming. He was working on his laptop in the late afternoon and said his family may look to stay in a hotel tonight if power isn't restored to their home.

A Godwin Avenue resident, who was at the library with her school-aged daughter, was in good spirits despite having been without power since Thursday.

"It was a new experience," she said, feeling that the situation offered her daughter a lesson to not take for granted the basic services we all rely on daily.

She said her family kept warm Thursday by building a fire, although the lack of power made her feel "isolated from the world."

Despite the township's offer of shelter, she was planning to spend the night at home.

"You just have to accept it," she said.

Marsha Rein, a Carlton Road resident, got some good news while doing work at the library. Police Lt. David Murphy, communicating via Rooney, reported her home to be fully powered a bit after 5 p.m. 

Rein said she lost power and heat at approximately 9 p.m. Thursday, but conditions last night weren't too bad. "I mostly braved the darkness," she said with a laugh.

Still, when she woke up today, Rein "expected everything to be on.

"It was so cold. It really gets to you," she said.

Dealing with the lack of heat may have been difficult enough, but Rein also found it hard to adjust to having no power and therefore no radio, Internet or television. To make matters worse, her cell phone battery had died, and she couldn't charge it.

"It's a really strange feeling not to be able to contact anyone," she said, which had prompted her to buy a handheld radio and batteries to have some line to the outside world. 

Driving conditions, outages

Roads were mostly clear and manageable today, with township, school board and private plows observed throughout the township.

Department of Public Works Manager Scott Fisher was sending his crews home to get some much-needed rest at approximately 4 p.m. today after having worked straight from 7 a.m. Thursday.

"We've got it as clean as we can get it right now."

Fisher said plowing and salting had been completed, although standby crews were at the ready should the snow again begin to fall. Should it start to accumulate, the Public Works crews would head back out to plow tonight. 

"We're hoping to hold the fort," he said.

Although only moderate flurries were seen from mid-afternoon into early evening, the National Weather Service warns that as much as 3 inches could still fall across northern New Jersey tonight. Plus, temperatures are expected to fall below freezing tonight, likely icing over the roads and making driving difficult Saturday. A winter storm advisory remains in effect until 6 a.m. Saturday.

Rockland Electric did not return calls for comment but did issue a news release this afternoon noting that 26,000 of its customers in New Jersey and New York were still without power, which could persist into next week despite "around-the-clock restoration efforts."

Although Rooney and Scanlan were reporting many homes being restored by early evening, an online outage map provided by Rockland Electric still shows hundreds of homes without power in Wyckoff. Restoration estimates extend to March 2 in some areas. To reach Rockland Electric, call 877-434-4100 or visit https://apps.coned.com/oronline/outage/electricoutage.aspx to report an outage. Additionally, residents can track outages at http://wp1.coned.com/or_stormcenter/default.aspx.

If residents need shelter tonight, or for any other assistance, call the police department at 201-891-2121.