S. Jersey mayors press Guadagno for storm aid

South Jersey mayors whose towns were pummeled by last week's storm, which left residents without power for days, got a chance Thursday to vent their frustration with state officials over the slow pace of recovery efforts.

About 50 officials from towns in Burlington, Camden, and Gloucester Counties met behind closed doors with Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno and other top state officials in the Woolwich Township Municipal Building.

Greenwich Township Mayor George Shivery Jr., a Republican, expressed optimism that the meeting would yield results. "We should be moving forward," he said.

The meeting was convened primarily to discuss damage in the state from the storm - now estimated at $11 million - and "resolve any confusion" about whether the state will seek federal disaster aid, said Brian Murray, a spokesman for Gov. Christie.

"The intent was to allow everyone to have some frank discussion," Murray said. Because Christie is out of the state, Guadagno, also a Republican, was dispatched as the acting governor.

Murray said that under the guidelines of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, storm damage must reach a threshold of $12.4 million for Christie to be able to ask President Obama for a federal disaster declaration.

Such a designation would make the state eligible to recoup some of the costs of repairing public facilities and properties, such as roads and parks, and pay overtime for police and emergency officials, Murray said.

"The assessment is still going on," he said. Most of the hundreds of homes damaged by the storm are covered under private insurance polices, he said.

Assemblyman John J. Burzichelli (D., Gloucester) said the "general tone" of the meeting was constructive and helped clear up any uncertainty about the process, which he attributed to a lack of communication with the state.

"The flow of information is what was missing," he said.

Local officials and legislators have been frustrated by the pace of the storm recovery and the response by Christie to local officials' requests for help with the costs of the cleanup.

"For the lieutenant governor to show up nine days later is an absolute insult for the residents of East Greenwich and all of the residents of South Jersey who have been impacted by the storm," said Mayor Dale Archer, a Republican. "It just brings the hairs on the back of your neck up."

The June 23 storm, which packed 85 m.p.h. straight-line winds in parts of Gloucester County, ripped up trees and knocked down power lines. Some residents coped by staying in hotels or purchasing generators; many had to discard spoiled food.

Archer said 2,800 trees and 100 utility poles were toppled in his 14-square-mile town. Streets were closed for days, he said.

Crews are using front-end loaders to remove debris, a process that could take weeks to complete, he said, adding, "It is a massive effort."

About 280,000 Atlantic City Electric customers were without power at one point; approximately 390,000 had outages statewide, including Public Service Electric & Gas customers.

PSE&G had restored power to its customers within four days, by Saturday morning.

It took Atlantic City Electric nearly a week to restore power to all customers, which has prompted questions about whether the utility was prepared for the storm.

The outages affected more customers statewide than those during Hurricane Sandy.

"It was as bad a storm as I have ever seen. It was the real deal," Burzichelli said.

The Board of Public Utilities has asked Atlantic City Electric to address the preparedness concerns at a July 22 public meeting.

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