Long Valley Dries Out After Irene [Multimedia]

Hurricane Irene swept through portions of Long Valley with fury for more than 12 hours Saturday night through Sunday morning, and all residents could do was watch as the damage unfolded.

Monday, filled with blue skies and mild temperatures, was set aside for cleaning up for many in Washington Township, who couldn’t believe what they saw come their way.

Phil Feuerstein of North Four Bridges Road couldn’t believe that his six acres of property was nearly covered by the Raritan River on Sunday morning, which, as of noon on Monday was still flowing over the roadway.

“It peaked around 8:30 (a.m.) on Sunday,” Feuerstein said about the water level that came within 40 yards of his home. “It was like running water, though. It didn’t sit, it just kept flowing. There was a tug to (the water)–it was no joke.”

Currently, the bridge over North Four Bridges Road is structurally unsafe according to township officials, and has been blocked off from drivers. Department of Public Works personnel were on North Four Bridges Road Monday repairing portions of the roadway that had been broken or eroded by the river’s strength.

Down in the center of Long Valley, buildings were struck in an instant, and there was no way to slow the damage.

“Water was coming out of the storm drains and shooting into the garage,” said Long Valley Volunteer Fire Fighter Chris Gartelmann, who was at the firehouse on Sunday. “The water came in, covered the entire floor and filled the kitchen."

Gartelmann said it took many of the firefighters longer than expected to get to the station on Sunday because of all the road closures. The personnel on hand Monday were busy pumping residential basements throughout the day.

Just across the street, and sitting on the river’s north bank was Zion Lutheran Church. One of the oldest structures in Washington Township felt the effects of an overflowing river, and were drying out Monday as best as possible.

As of 1 p.m. on Sunday, there were puddles throughout the Long Valley Christian Nursery School classrooms–located within Zion Lutheran Church–according to Director Jennifer Webster.

Zion’s property, however, didn’t fare as well. The playground behind the building lost a new layer of mulch, and the Zion Baseball Field’s outfield fence was knocked over by the river’s wrath. Infield dirt was picked up and laid out into the outfield as well.

Fortunately Zion’s new building addition was unharmed.

Business breaker

Located along the river’s south bank, Cycle Craft Bicycle Shop felt the effects of flooding as well. After the water receded, the store still had two inches of standing water inside, according to manager Jeff O’Hara.

“There was a recycling bin in this room,” O’Hara said, pointing to the back of the shop, “and it ended up in this room. There was stuff from this part of the store that ended up in the back. It was just crazy how it happened.”

Cycle Crafts basement was completely filled as well. Store employees spent Monday emptying any merchandise from the floor so the carpets could dry.

O’Hara estimated, for this time of year, the business could lose up to $2,000 in profits for each day they are unable to run as planned. Power was restored to that part of Washington Township by 3 p.m. Monday.