Tidal Flooding Hits Some Neighborhoods, Breaches Reported on Barrier Island

The midday high tide Thursday caused water to overflow bulkheads in some Brick Township neighborhoods, but no one had to be rescued and there were few reports of water intruding into residential homes.

Some streets, but not all, in the Shore Acres neighborhood were under water, and bay water was overflowing the lagoon along Paul Jones Drive in that area. Most streets, however, remained passable.

It was a similar story in the Cherry Quay section, where many streets were under water, but generally passable.

In Seawood Harbor and off St. Lawrence Boulevard, there was no obvious flooding, though it was clear the neighborhood had seen some very minor tidal flooding earlier judging by a small amount of debris in the road.

Mayor Stephen C. Acropolis said the township prepared for potential rescues and manned fire houses with personnel ready to help, but rescue crews were not needed.

On the barrier island, personnel were evacuated around 1 a.m., Acropolis said.

There were several small breaches on the island, though most could be described as water overflowing dunes rather than a true breach. By 1:30 p.m. Thursday, all of the breaches had been repaired, Acropolis said.

The mayor credited the township's construction of a sand berm along the entirety of the Brick oceanfront with helping to prevent more serious setbacks, including the possibility of a true breach.

There were more serious breaches in Mantoloking, however, Acropolis said.

By 2 p.m. Thursday, 56 customers out of about 35,000 total in Brick were out of power, according to Jersey Central Power & Light.

The traffic light at the intersection of Route 70 and Brick Boulevard was not functioning, however police were directing traffic and there were no delays in the area.