CREST HAVEN – County Commissioner Will Morey, July 11, addressed the July 7-9 electrical outage that affected 24,000 Atlantic City Electric customers in the Wildwoods.
Morey said the fire-caused disruption had a “very gigantic impact on the community.”
That included motels that had to be emptied, businesses that could not operate, and restaurants that sustained losses of food and customers.
Morey, whose family owns amusement piers on the Wildwood Boardwalk, asked his peers whether they believed a discussion with electric company officials was warranted.
Such discourse should be in “a professional manner,” Morey said.
Among the questions he wants to ask: “Why did such a substantial disaster occur? It wasn’t a lightning strike. It wasn’t a plane crash.”
He noted the utility’s “substantial investment” to upgrade its delivery system but said he wants to know what measures are in place to ensure such a situation is not repeated.
He lauded the “tons of people” from the utility who have interacted with the board.
“However, they are moving generators in place, at one or more locations, maybe a generator farm of five hooked together,” he said.
That suggests the magnitude of the issue, in his opinion.
“Folks are saying, ‘What happened and why?'” Morey added.
“It’s important we work in a partnership with them to understand what occurred,” he said.
Further, Morey wants to know what steps the utility will take to ensure that a similar occurrence does not happen elsewhere in the county.
“It was as if someone shot off a cannon and said, ‘Evacuate the island, a hurricane is coming, a tsunami is coming.’ A tremendous number of people were trying to get off the island,” Morey said.
He cited safety issues, which included no traffic signals operating. That situation meant police officers had to handle traffic control.
The Wildwood Police Department issued an email notice at 12:26 p.m., July 7, that advised of a “fire at the electric plant substation. Power is out throughout the island,” it read.
A subsequent notice told of intersections “controlled by stop signs and police officers.”
In darkened motels, no lights were burning for stairwells and parking areas.
“Again, it’s not over,” Morey added.
Generators are being placed in various locations around Five Mile Island.
“We took one (generator) in one of our parking lots to help,” Morey said.
He urged the board to make a “full inquiry and follow up with this in a professional manner with Atlantic Electric.”
Commissioner Director Leonard Desiderio said the board monitored the situation over the weekend.
“Our thoughts were with the people of Wildwood. We will be anxiously awaiting what Atlantic City Electric has to say. What is their plan of action,” Desiderio said.
He added that the utility needs time to “figure out what they’re going to do.”
“It’s important we get to the bottom of it and what did transpire; and let’s all work together and ensure that it does not happen again anywhere in the county,” the director added.
A North Wildwood resident told a Herald reporter his home was without electricity for 41 hours. That resulted in a substantial loss of frozen and refrigerated food, none of which was covered by their homeowner’s insurance.
In Other Business
Three members were reappointed to three-year terms on the Mental Health, Alcohol, and Drug Abuse Board. They were Joe Landis, County Prosecutor’s Office; Rev. Thomas Dawson, Mays Landing; and Majken Mechling, Court House.
All are volunteers who serve without compensation, according to the resolution. Terms will expire June 30, 2026.
Once again, the board rejected all bids received for the exterior maintenance of the Historic Courthouse, the county seat’s focal point. The resolution stated those bids, received June 28, exceeded cost estimates. The building’s paint is peeling, pieces of wood are falling away, and the gold dome shows the need for repair.
In a resolution, the board accepted conditions for replacing the Marshallville Road Bridge in Upper Township with a pedestrian bridge.
The document accepted conditions set by the state Historic Preservation Office and the state Register of Historic Places.
The Prosecutor’s Office was awarded a $389,527 grant to purchase an automated license plate reader. The funding came from the state Department of Law and Public Safety, Division of Administration, Office of the Attorney General.
Additional work for $60,730 by Sadat Associates Inc. for engineering services was approved in connection with remediation services at a former county-owned landfill on Fulling Mill Road in Lower Township.
An additional $39,850 was approved for a change order for construction on the government services building at the county airport. The Atlantic County Improvement Authority administers the construction contracts.
A resolution increased by $62,344 the contract with Gibson Associates PA for construction engineering services in connection with the Pacific Avenue (County Road 621) resurfacing project in Wildwood Crest and Lower Township.
Speed limits will be modified in the Del Haven section of Middle Township and Lower Township on Bayshore Road.
The first section, between the Lower Township-Middle Township line, 150 feet south of the intersection of Bayshore Road and Rutledge Avenue, is 45 mph.
The second zone, 150 feet south of Rutledge Avenue to Route 47, is 35 miles per hour.
