Evacuation Order Lifted for Brick Mainland; Power Woes Plague Township

A mandatory evacutation order for a number of neighborhoods in Brick's mainland portion will be lifted Thursday afternoon, police said Tuesday.

The Brick Township Office of Emergency Management will lift the mandatory evacuation order for the mainland portion of town at 3 p.m., according to Brick Police Sgt. Keith Reinhard.

The township's barrier island sections remain closed to the public.

The mainland evacuation was ordered due to a nor'easter that followed the landfall of Hurricane Sandy last week.

The nor'easter has left Brick in poor shape thanks to downed trees and power lines caused by the heavy, wet nature of the unusual November snowstorm. Numerous traffic lights were out again on Route 70, prompting officials to park school buses in the middle of intersections to block traffic from attempting to cross the busy state highway.

Jersey Central Power and Light reported 13,076 customers in Brick being out of power out of approximately 34,000 total customers.

Mayor Stephen C. Acropolis said he is planning to meet, alongside other local mayors, with the utility to discuss the company's efforts to restore power.

"I'm not happy with the response," he said.

Meanwhile, organizations were stepping in to help those affected by the second storm in just over a week.

Brick Knights of Columbus Council 836 has announced it will host a spaghetti dinner Friday evening at its building at 1065 Cedar Bridge Avenue. Dinner will be served from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

The township's FEMA disaster center is also open and now located in Civic Plaza, on Chambers Bridge Road.