Trenton, NJ –Governor Chris Christie today authorized the closure of all State Offices for Tuesday, October 30, 2012 as a result of the dangerous and deteriorating weather conditions across the state associated with the impact of Hurricane Sandy.
Non-essential employees should not report for their normal day shift tomorrow. Essential employees should report to work on schedule. All notifications are currently being made and coordinated by the New Jersey Office of Emergency Management in an expeditious manner.
The New Jersey Office of Emergency Management in coordination with the New Jersey Department of Transportation and the Board of Public Utilities as well as various State agencies will continue to monitor the storm and continue statewide cleanup efforts until the event concludes. New Jerseyans are encouraged to comply with orders and guidance from their local emergency management and government officials in preparing for the storm and to avoid any unnecessary risks when the storm makes landfall.
Drivers are advised to stay off of the roads whenever possible and otherwise drive with caution, follow the rules of the road, stay alert and respect the weather elements and the guidance and orders of emergency management and government officials. Unnecessary travel is not recommended.
Motorists are encouraged to check for current road conditions and closures at the New Jersey Department of Transportation website: www.NJ511.info.
For more storm preparedness information please log on to: www.ready.nj.gov
Orders Mandatory Evacuation of Barrier Islands and Atlantic City Effective 4PM Sunday
Urges Residents to Use Nice Weather Saturday and Sunday to Get Prepared
Warns Retailers Against Price Gouging
Governor Chris Christie thanks first responders from the East Keansburg Fire Company prior to his Hurricane Sandy preparedness briefing in North Middletown
Middletown- Governor Chris Christie flew into to Middletown this morning to announce that he has declared all of New Jersey under a State of Emergency in preparation of Hurricane Sandy. The storm is expect to made landfall in New Jersey, somewhere between Cape May and Seaside late Sunday.
Christie has ordered a mandatory evacuation of New Jersey’s barrier islands south of Seaside and Atlantic City effective at 4PM on Sunday. All roads heading into those locations will be closed.
Residents of the northern coastal regions of Monmouth and Ocean Counties are left to their own discretion to voluntarily evacuate, pending updates from the National Weather Service.
Christie said that when shelter is needed that, except in those areas being evactuated, residents should stay in their homes or arrange to stay with family members. Shelters are being set up in all counties for those who can not stay at home or with family. The State will have five shelters open in the event of overflow at the county shelters.
“As we move towards what is an increasingly likelihood of seeing Sandy make landfall in New Jersey, I am urging all New Jerseyans to take every possible and reasonable precaution to ready themselves for the storm’s potential impact. That means having an emergency action plan for their families and other loved ones who may require assistance, and avoiding unnecessary risks in the severe weather, including staying off of the roads,” said Governor Christie. “At the state level, we are taking immediate steps to prepare for the storm’s impact and ensure that state, local and county governments have the tools they need to manage and respond in a coordinated way. With this, government at every level can respond more effectively to conditions on the ground, activate emergency operations plans, and ensure that resources are being marshaled to assist and protect the public through this storm.”
Christie encouraged residents to stay off of the roads during the storm and announced that NJ Transit will cross honor tickets and passes, Monday through Wednesday, giving those commuting to work greater access and flexibilty to public transportation in the event that their normal routes are closed due to the storm.
The governor emphasised that, unlike previous storms that have move through quickly, Sandy is expect to move slowly and impact the area for up to three days.
Utilities repair crews will not restore power while the storm is ongoing. Power outages are expected to last for as long as 7 to 10 days.
In response to a reporter’s question, Christie urged residents who are using power generators to make sure they are doing so correctly according to the manufacturers’ directions. “If it looks stupid, it is stupid,” the governor said, responding to the question about residents sharing power from generators with their neighbors via extension cords.
Following Christie’s briefing to the press and about 200 Middletown residents, his office issued a warning to merchants against price gouging.
“During emergencies, New Jerseyans should look out for each other – not seek to take advantage of each other,” said Christie. “The State Division of Consumer Affairs will look closely at any and all complaints about alleged price gouging. Anyone found to have violated the law will face significant penalties.”
Price increases are deemed excessive under the law if they are more than 10 percent above the price at which the good or service was sold during the normal course of business, prior to the state of emergency. The law does allow that, if the merchant faces additional costs imposed by suppliers or legitimate logistical concerns, a price increase is considered excessive if it is more than 10 percent above the amount of markup from cost, compared with the markup normally applied.
Violations of the price-gouging law are punishable by civil penalties of up to $10,000 for the first offense and $20,000 for the second and subsequent offenses. Each individual sale of merchandise is considered a separate and distinct event.
State Street Wire, the pay sister site of Politickernj, is reporting that Governor Chris Christie said that the controversy State Senator Ray Lesniak is making over former Monmouth County Sheriff Joe Oxley’s nomination as a Superior Court Judge is “just another excuse” by Lesniak and the Democrats not to give Christie’s judicial nominations confirmation hearings.
Lesniak wants the FBI’s files from their investigation into Solomon Dwek’s allegations that Oxley, while sheriff, tipped off the real estate swindler to foreclosures in Monmouth County prior to the information becoming public. Oxley has refused to authorize the release of the files and the Justice Department has declined Lesniak’s appeal that the public interest outweighs Oxley’s privacy.
Christie said that his successor as US Attorney, Paul Fishman, found “no factual basis” in Dwek’s claims.
Christie said he knows first-hand how the data provided by cooperating witnesses can be.
“Sometimes it can be reliable, sometimes it can be fiction,” he said. “I think it’s unfair to put that kind of fiction on the public stream.”
Christie said that the judiciary committee should do its job and hold a confirmation hearing for Oxley.
Oxley has referred requests for comment to the governor’s office.
As a practicing attorney, Oxley could have legitimate reasons, including attorney-client privilege, for refusing to authorize the release of his recorded conversations.
The final debate of the race between U.S. Senator Bob Menendez and State Senator Joe Kyrillos for a 6 year term in the U.S. Senate was taped for television yesterday afternoon. It will air at 9:30 this morning on ABC in Philadelphia and at 11 on ABC in New York. NorthJersey.com reports on the debate here.
Kyrillos will be attending the 14th Dushahra Celebration in Edison this afternoon at 3:50. This morning he makes a South Jersey swing, appearing at the Southern Jersey Jewish Coalition Brunch at the Hotel ML in Mount Laurel at 10:30. At 11:20 he will be attending the Blackwood Pumpkin Festival before heading to Atlantic County for the Smithville Irish Festival at 1:20.
Governor Chris Christie will be campaigning with Kyrillos in Princeton tomorrow, 10:30am at the Princetonian Diner on Route 1.
Governor Chris Christie will be appearing on the Sunday morning talk shows of ABC, CBS and NBC this weekend.
Christie will be live with George Stephanopoulos in ABC’s “This Week”, 10am in New York and rebroadcast at 10:30 am in Philadelphia.
The interviews with CBS’s “Face the Nation” and NBC’s “Meet the Press” will be taped. Face the Nation airs at 10:30 am in both New York and Philadelphia. “Meet the Press” airs at 10:00 am in Atlantic City and at 10:30 am in New York and Philadelphia.
Following his live interview with Stephanopoulos, Christie is scheduled to attend the 25th Annual Governor’s Military Review at the New Jersey National Guard Training Center in Sea Girt at 11am.
Unless Stephanopoulos is broadcasting from Sea Girt, Christie will very likely be traveling from ABC’s studio in New York to Sea Girt via helicopter. Expect Democratic whining on Monday.
